the quacking fiber addict

whoosh!

2007-08-09T22:11:00.000-07:00

Sorry for any confusion. Wordpress (alas for Blogger) offers file hosting and suchlike, which I'm going to be needing more and more as time goes on.

yes, I forgot my camera again

2007-08-07T21:32:00.000-07:00

But, I had the camera-phone again. So, yay, blurry picture time! Aren't you sooo excited??

(Aimee is holding the trekking sock aloft, btw)

Tonight was the second attempt at a weekly knitting meet-up at Mabel's Cafe & Knittery. I think we can all safely pronounce it a success. After last week's showing of 4 (including moi) and my lonesome experience on Sunday, I wasn't too hopeful. Well, wow. Knitters upon knitters kept pouring through the doors.

You can't see 'em all in the photo (hey, I tried), but a couple of knitters and a knitting husband were hidden by the two A(i)my/ee's and Kate. So, yeah, maybe a dozen people for our second week? Not too bad. And lots of fun. The knitting class, shuffled off to the far corner, watched us curiously. One student even went so far as to say she'd come and knit with us after the class finished.

All in all, much more satisfying than Sunday. Although, I did get lovely, lovely yarn on Sunday...

Hmm, hard pick.

Also, today I got The Call from Knit/ Purl regarding my Spocks pattern. I am pleased. It is good. I realised after hanging up, of course, that I had a few questions to add to my list. Ahwell, I go to Knit/ Purl every Thursday anyway.

Knitting (actual knitting) news? I CO the Celtic Cables Cap yesterday. And, dammit, I swatched. Twice. I followed the pattern. By row 20 it was apparent that the FO would have fit a very large watermelon. I can't bear to rip it yet, oh well.

But I finally found the right length DPNs for the, ah, thingies for Stephieface's son. The ones I had been using were about 2" too short and I kept losing stitches. Oh, the joy.

In fact, I'm gonna go and knit on that for awhile and watch Eureka.

um, where was I?

2007-08-05T22:06:00.001-07:00

Is it Sunday evening already? Wow, that was... fractured. I had a couple of really low days there, so not much was done. Other than lying in bed, wondering what I had done to piss off Hashem so badly.

But I'm better now, and have finally admitted to myself that it's time to buck up and go to a psychologist. The antidepressants are clearly not working. I hate having to try new drugs (friends and family can tell about the horror of me on Welbutrin), but I hate the lows even more.

Anyway. Enough drama. Somehow, I managed to knit a bit. The heels of the Baudelaires took longer than any other heels I've knit. This might be due to my own problems at the time, or it might just be due to the fact that the heels are f*cking insane.

Genius. I'm not denying the genius of toe-up heel gussets/ flaps. But insane. Clearly insane. Cookie A. must have some interesting thoughts.

Tonight was supposed to be a Knitting Southies meet-up (ravelry), but I ended up being the only one to turn out. Nice, I know. I forgive Aimee, as she has a young daughter. To make myself feel better, I indulged in yarn therapy. Looking around Mabel's, I sought the perfect yarn for Mona's Embossed Leaves socks.

Finally, I spied the Green Mountain Spinnery cubbies. Ah, c'est magnifique. The colourway "Yarrow" immediately made me think of Birch leaves in autumn, so I snatched up two skeins of Cotton Comfort (20% organic cotton/ 80% wool - and machine washable!), to be used as soon as I get some needles free:

Did I mention that I took out Favourite Socks and Knitting On The Road from the local library? No? Hehehe.

Aaand look, more knitting news!, I'm nearly done with the left sleeve of the SBT, now affectionately known as Miss Lizzy's Spencer:

I've always been fond of the character Elizabeth Bennett, from Pride & Prejudice. Designing something with her in mind has been of interest ever since I read the "Jane Austen knitting" thread on Craftster.

In non-knitting news, I applied for 10 different jobs on Friday. I have absolutely no doubt that I will not be hired for any of them. Which is fine, I have tons of yarn to keep me company.

Oh, and finally, ravelry is going to steal my soul. Sockdown: Ravelry is a success. The SKA hyas 740+ members, and I'm losing track of all the forums I'm on. It's worse crack than Craftster. Someone saaave me. (well, not really, I'm having too much fun)

throbbing

2007-08-02T22:46:00.001-07:00

Arg. Throbbing headache. Short post time. Went to the Portland International Rose Tests Gardens today:

"Wow," says it all. The perfume was intoxicating, the scenery dazzling, and there was a rainbow of roses spread about. My favourite (other than the one above) was Amethyst:

Honest to goodness, that was the actual colour of the roses.

There was also the Shakespearean garden:

Every plant mentioned by Shakespeare in his plays, sonnets, whatever, was planted there. I couldn't help but wander around the beds barefoot, indulging in the feeling of lush grass against my soles.

Speaking of soles - baudelaire is nearly to the heels:

And, ouch, too much sun, too much champagne, and just too much stuff today. Gonna go and be quiet in the dark.

Sauvie Island

2007-08-01T17:33:00.000-07:00

Sunday was completely uneventful. Monday was... I've already forgotten, so one can assume it was also equally uneventful. Tuesday was not uneventful, so it warrants a belated post.

Yesterday, Mum, Emm, Charlie and I drove out to Sauvie Island. It's a large island located in the Columbia River, 30 mins outside of Portland. It's famous for having been a Native American, and later Pioneer, site. Of course I realised, as we were driving along OR-30, that I had forgotten my camera at home. Mum and Emm sighed and made snarky comments when I told them I'd use my camera phone instead. Neider, neider to them - it actually worked.

Here's the southern coast of Sauvie Island, inside the Wildlife Area, taken atop one of the dykes running along the coast:

I have to say that Sauvie Island was incredibly beautiful, and I'm embarrassed that I didn't get any good photos to prove this. Being incredibly fertile (located on an island in the middle of a river along a volcanic line), there were farms and plants of every type. We passed fields of waving purple at a lavender farm. Rippling gold and green were acres and acres of wheat and corn. And Bailey's gardening plants were being propagated, too. I even saw wild pears growing on the southern coast.

But, because I was so busy admiring, I tended to forget to take a photo until it was too late. I'm such a tourist, sorry. I can at least claim I remembered to take travelling sock photos:

(Baudelaires on the southern beach)

Once in the Wildlife Area, we managed to get down to the beach. Charlie went crazy, because he loves to play in water. I pulled out my Crocs and Emm rolled up his shorts:

(yep, Charlie still has the dorky haircut)

Here're Emm and Charlie racing along the shore:

After playing on the southern beach, driving, hiking around the Wildlife Area - they have an island on Sauvie Island, can you believe it?, and finding fresh produce for Emm to devour, we went to the northern coast. The northern coast was different from the southern in a bunch of ways: the water was colder, it was windier, and there was sand:

The socks really enjoyed their time lounging in the sun. We all felt better for it, because they've been complaining incessantly about the trekking sock seeing all the action. Emm even offered to carry them into the Columbia:

And so the socks were quieter on the way home.

By 4:30, we had to leave because I've started a Stitch 'n' Bitch at Mabel's on Tuesday nights, from 6 - 9 pm. Luckily, I wasn't too late (oops?), and I got to sit and chat and knit with 3 other PDX knitters for 3 hours. We're planning to make it a weekly meeting, if you're in the PDX area and are interested.

By the time I got home, I was completely exhausted and barely managed to keep my eyes open long enough to watch Eureka. I (still) <3 Eureka.

Today was pointless. I went to an interview for a job, but there's no way I can take it. It's too far away for too few hours for too little pay. *sigh*

But, I have my knitting. And I heard from D at Knit/ Purl yesterday - they're buying my pattern! I'll get the contract details tomorrow or on Friday. W00T!

That alone makes today acceptable. I'm gonna go and find something cool to drink, it's 92F out...

lagging

2007-07-28T19:42:00.001-07:00

My sleep cycle is all wonky after the Harry Potter release party. It's only been a week, so hopefully it'll stabilize soon. In the meantime, I'm surviving off of catnaps.

On Friday, Mum and I went to Forest Park, the largest park in any city in the US. Over 5000 acres of greenery, paths, and an Audubon sanctuary. We took the Wildwood path, which curves along a very steep drop (above a 100 ft straight down), but the sock wasn't too scared:

The dog was tenacious and general pain in the tuckus. I suppose we should consider ourselves lucky he didn't try to follow a bird off the trail, down the slope. The area is famous for it's few remaining old growth Douglas Firs - some, I'm told, are up to 8 ft in diameter. The largest we saw was about 6 ft. But, the undergrowth (secondary) was full of maidenhair ferns, Solomon's seal, and teeny-tiny wild flowers. I really do love the PNW, just for places like this:

Growing up in an area that had been lived on, and tamed by humans, for thousands of years (the Cherokee and Iroquois were settled, remember?) meant that I never saw a tree 100's of feet high until moving to Oregon. Seeing hundreds of them for the first time (in 2002), blocking out the sun and dizzyingly tall, was an experience I'll never forget. Even now, thousands of acres of wild forest, old and secondary growth, is awe-inspiring to someone raised on concrete and manicured lawns.

It also impresses (and amuses) the hell outta me that women pioneers settled Oregon wearing corsets and skirts (don't tell me they didn't, cuz they did). I often wonder at the foolishness of it all.

But, anyway, that's enough musing. I know all y'all come for the knitting content.

Today, after sitting through a series excruciatingly off-key Torah readings (oy), meeting some of the local Reconstructionist Shul (I miss East Coast Conservative services so much), and escaping narrowly from a rowdy Bar Mitzvah crowd - I dragged the folks to Lint. If you haven't heard by now that Lint is closing, you probably don't live in the PDX area and don't care.

But, as I do, and the Shul was 5 blocks away, we made a stop. This post definitely qualifies for SSE. 10 balls of Rowan 4-Ply Cotton:

9 in Aegean, for the body of a lace pullover, and 1 in Bluebell for accents.
Can you tell I already have the pattern designed?

Aaand, the last 2 balls of Panda Cotton in white:

For a pair of spocks with antique, enameled black buttons. I cannot wait to finish them. I just have to finish little D's pair (one nearly done!), and then I can CO my own.

Other than that? I put the spencer-bolero-thing back on the needles, because Opus wants a copy of the pattern - but I have to finish knitting the SBT before I can write a pattern for it. I'm 16 rows away from finishing Clue 2 on the Mystery Stole, and am nearly to the heels on Baudelaire.

And that's about everything. I hope this post was better than the last few... And, thank you everyone for your congrats! This is so exciting.

I swear I'm not a deadbeat

2007-07-26T23:36:00.000-07:00

I feel guilty because I've been promising to post the spocks pattern for so long. Well, honest to goodness, I was planning to post it tonight. I brought my camera, the spocks, and the determination to trap a knitter into being my model with me to tonight's Sip'n'Knit. I promised Emmos I wouldn't post the photos I submitted to knitty online, for various reasons.

Anyway. Someone actually volunteered to be a model (wow, that's a first), and as I was getting my camera set up, the owner of Knit/ Purl saw the spocks. She wanted to buy the pattern to sell through their shop/ site. I'm uncertain as to whether this'll be through the Knit/Purl pattern line or ShiBui, at the moment.

Well, who am I to say no to payment? (My credit card statement alone would have prompted me to say yes)

They're holding onto the spocks for a meeting with their pattern editor on Wednesday. I've been promised the purchasing details ASAP.

Sooo... yeah. To make up for this complete posting deficit, I come bearing a picture of Amy Singer:

Who is very friendly and outgoing. She was immediately ensconced in the (laaarge) group, and I'm sure Muggles could hear us from miles away.

And, yeah. I'm bad. Not much body to this post, again. I'm nearly done with the Slightly Twisted socks - and I'll post that pattern, soon, I promise.

socks and ... more socks

2007-07-25T20:06:00.001-07:00

This post is a bit tardy. I uploaded the pictures last night, but then got distracted by cleaning and knitting that I forgot to finish it. Oops? (It's now 3pm, 7/26/07)

My promise to write better posts is going to be unfulfilled for another day. Sorry. Here's my Baudelaire progress as of yesterday:

And, here's the trekking sock enjoying the sun and breeze on the Willamette:

(taken with my phone)

At around 4, Emm started whining (okay, it was closer to nagging) about the fact that I had promised to take a walk with him. I don't know why the boy won't go on walks by himself, he just won't. I decided to look up the Portland parks service website and decided that we would go to Waterfront Park.

By the end of a 2 mi walk, Emm was whining (he really was) because he was hungry. Sometimes I feel like I have a 5 year old. Anyway. I fed him and we made our way home on a packed bus (where I entertained flashbacks of Naples), and my knitting was covertly watched by a couple dozen people.

So... lemme see. The 'rents came home last night, as the paint fumes were causing Mum to have asthma attacks. They 'ooh'd and 'ahh'd over the new spinning wheel and my progress on the MS3.

And, well, that's about it. I'm going to try and call the Peace Corps again tomorrow (I keep forgetting about the time difference and always manage to call on their lunch break or after closing). Amy Singer will be at the Sip'n'Knit tonight, I've already promised to meet with Opus there.

I guess I'd better bring my camera to make up for the last couple of lame posts.

sleepyhead

2007-07-24T22:10:00.000-07:00

Got food poisoning yesterday. Or, something like it. Mum and Emm and I all got sick within 3 hours of eating at Burgerville. *sigh* I also got to take copious amounts of Benadryl, because they use the same oil for french fries and onion rings. Not going there again.

All the Benadryl is making me sleeeepy.

But I was very excited (in a droopy way) to receive two parcels in the mail yesterday. One from Penny, containing ducky finger puppers to cheer me up (and cotton floss):

I have a ducky finger pirate!!!
(Thank you, Penny!)

The other package was from The Loopy Ewe. I gave in and ordered one of their new CTH Sockitome skeins, in "Peacock":

I ordered it on Friday, wow that was fast.

Because I was feeling quite peaky, I didn't get much knitting done. I did, however, finally strap some steel to my backbone and grafted on the lace border to Mum's Oregon lace shawl:

Now I just need to block it.
(This is where I cry: help meeee!)

After finishing that (and staring at the wall for an hour or two), I cast on a pair of Baudelaire, with my ShiBui Knits Sock, in "Orchid":

And, um, I'm sorry this post is so bare-bones. I'm still a bit peaky.

I went to the East Side Knitters Meet-up at Twisted tonight, even so, and met a bunch of cool knit-bloggers. The ride there was harrowing. The first connection I made was wrong (why am I in the boonies?) and then I accidentally got on the Knight Bus disguised as a Muggle vehicle. I swear to Hashem the bus drove up on curbs and made turns that are impossible within the Laws of Physics.

But, positive note - I arrived still-breathing, met lots of friendly knitters (already noted, I know), and didn't spend a dime on yarn. Food doesn't count. We (Aimee and I) have agreed to start a knitting group nearer to us on Tuesday nights. Mabel's Cafe & Knittery, 6 - 9 pm. Drop by if you're in SE PDX :D

I think that's everything. I'll do better tomorrow, I promise. Over and out.

I forget

2007-07-22T20:37:00.000-07:00

What I was planning to blog about. Bugrit. Instead, I offer the distraction of handspun yarn p0rn:

1.5 oz (I think) of fine wool mix

I love my new wheel. It has beautifully smooth action, and it spins laceweight easily. What more could I want, eh?

Oh, now I remember what I was planning on mentioning. I'm not quite in shock (okay, maybe a little) over the fact that Sock Knitters Anonymous now has 589 members on ravelry. I'm also not quite in shock over the fact that people actually want to take part of the year-long knitting challenge I suggested. It is a bit surprising how many knitters are interested.

But, I must admit, I am a bit shocked by how many indie yarn dyers and Etsy sellers have agreed to donate yarn and knitting goodies for monthly prizes and for our Mystery Sock designers to use with their patterns. Seriously, last I heard from our great and wise Sockdown prize mod (Maia) we had 15 skeins of yarn donated and assorted sundry other goodies.

The challenge doesn't start until August.

Someone pinch me.

Since I am not my brother

2007-07-21T12:48:00.000-07:00

I will not post Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows spoilers. I could kick him for doing things like that.

We left for the Powell's Harry Potter release party at 8:30 pm - the party was supposed to start at 10. After dinner, we crossed the river and finally found parking. The city of Portland had actually closed Couch St between 10th and 11th! It was insane, in a good way. The Powell's employees estimated that 3,000 people would be there.

Because I didn't finish Mum's robes in time, I finally convinced her to wear mine (I was not wearing velvet in that humidity). Emm and I dressed up as, ah, 'Muggles'. Here we are with Hagrid:

And here is part of the crowd at 10:30 pm:

Emm at Platform 9 3/4 (the side entrance to Powell's):

And Mum with Dumbledore:

Powell's definitely went all-out for this final release. They hired street performers, set up speakers to play the HP movie soundtracks, and had props set up everywhere. At 12:01 they opened the doors. Since people had started lining up at 9 am, we were closer to the back of the line. But things moved relatively fast.

Relatively. The line, in the end, snaked on itself 5 times on Couch St, wrapped around Powell's City of Books (which is a building the size of a full city block), swept past the front of the line and ended around the corner of 11th and something.

By 2 am, we were at the front of the line and I had finished knitting the first Trekking sock:

I didn't weave in the ends, that would have been insane. About as insane as the people taking pictures of me because I was knitting. In a street (and store) full of people in Wizarding and 'Muggle' costumes, I was the one who was stared at and photographed.

Muggles.

We arrived home with the books at 2:30 pm. I changed and started reading. At 7 am this morning I noticed that I could turn off my ceiling light (because the sun had risen), but refused to get up/ put down the book until I had finished entirely.

I read the last page at 8 am. It's as addictive as the other 6. And good. Really, really good.

Read it.

And now I'm going to go back to bed for a little while. And spin. I want to spin when I wake up...

escapism

2007-07-19T23:04:00.001-07:00

Yesterday was this:

And these:

Meaning, I spent most of the day unpacking boxes and stealing snatches of time to sew or knit. I was completely exhausted and brain-dead by the time I fell into bed (around 2am). But, most of the family's books are unpacked. I say most, because all of them won't fit on the shelves we have here. I live with a mob of bibliophiles. Oy.

I was, as you all correctly guessed, more than a little depressed this morning and afternoon. The JW's arrival:

Helped alleviate that. In fact, I let myself spin for an hour - no unpacking, cleaning or sewing (which is why Mum's robes are still unfinished). I felt much better, most of the tension had eased out of me and I was almost at peace with the world in general, and the Peace Corps in particular.

After an hour I had half a bobbin of lace-weight yarn:

Spun of the lovely ultra-fine wool mix I got from a local breeder. Nice. Soft and sqooshy. And it wants to be spun laceweight - my kind of wool.

After that, I made myself get up, clean the kitchen and iron the fabric for the HP sleeves and lining. Now I just have to actually use the fabric. It's laying on the floor, spread out, and I have completely forgotten how I was going to attach the lining. I had an idea that made sense at the time... but no longer.

At 4:30 I jumped on a bus to go downtown early - to hit Josephine's for bias tape (for the robes, a ha, I am not a complete deadbeat), and then Knit/ Purl for tonight's Sip'n'Knit. I managed, within an hour to spill my flute of champagne on their carpet. Brava to me. They took it in stride and told me how often they spilled their coffee, tea, liquor on the floor - but I still felt like an idiot.

Opus convinced me to leave for a bit and get chocolate. Which is how I ended up eating chocolate cake and pie for dinner and reserving two copies of Harry Potter and the Deathly Hollows at Powell's. She really is a terrible influence on me. In the best way, of course.

We never made it back, bad us, cuz we kept getting distracted. I'll explain next week. But, right now, those robes need to be lined. All while the wicked JW sits there, whispering to me...

Oy gavault.

Givin' 'em ulcers.

2007-07-19T14:01:00.000-07:00

My screening nurse and medical screening assistant are clearly: a) complete bums, b) worked off their collective hinies, or c) avoiding me like the Plague. I've tried calling twice. Not at their desks.

So, I've resorted to emails.

I'm very frustrated and angry, I admit it. I've been rejected for 4 jobs in the past 2 days, Knitty has rejected my pattern, and the Peace Corps is acting like a dead-beat dad avoiding child support.

Well, fine.

I'm going to go and distract myself. My new(ish) Journey Wheel arrived today and I feel the need to spin. Mum's robes can bloody well wait.

ah

2007-07-18T00:19:00.000-07:00

My parents took my deferment worse than I did, when I called them this morning. Mum was almost in tears and Dad sounded like the dog had died. They were surprised at 'how well' I was taking this. Well, it helps that I found this on the Peace Corps medical clearance FAQs:

If you have any of the following conditions, your entry into Peace Corps will be deferred until the condition is resolved:
Kidney or Bladder Infections

Great. Now I have to bother my Urologist again. But, I'm going to call them (bloody Federal holiday today). I swear. If only because I was raised in the South. "If you can't break their hearts, give 'em ulcers."

Anyway. I spent the day being a little self-indulgent. I dragged my brother and the mutt on a 3 mi hike to The Knittn' Kitten and got a fat quarter, 3 12" zippers, and 3 pieces of craft felt - all for $2.65. Gotta love craft thrift stores.

When we got home, I put my new fabric to work and tried my hand (again) at this tutorial. I think I'm close to getting the pattern down. I have 1 bag I can bear to look at (well, if I ignore the handle) without wincing (too much):

And another bag that taught me why I should follow the pattern's specifications:

Learn from my mistake - use a 12" zipper, not 9" zipper I just happened to have lying around. Also, use a zipper and not snap-tape (which was really last night's lesson, but it bears repeating).

I think I'm going to force Opus to take the bags away from me - she can burn them for all I care - but maybe she (or her Mum) can use them for their knitting WIPs. I just can help but frown at the fact that I put the wrist band on backwards on one and askew on the other. *sigh*

Other than that I have: made dinner, done 2 loads of laundry, dyed the lining of for the mock-up robes, knit 10 rows on the MS3, and knit 2" on the Slighty Twisted sock. Sooo... all in all, I'm not doing too bad. I just wish I hadn't eaten those Oreo's earlier.

Tomorrow I get to line the robes. And call the Peace Corps.

And walk off those Oreo's.

'deferred'?

2007-07-17T00:12:00.000-07:00

I just checked my Peace Corps status.

DEFERRED. You have been medically deferred. If you have any questions regarding your medical status, please contact your screening nurse.

What?

Another reason for:

2007-07-16T23:39:00.000-07:00

Me to never become a sheep shearer
Australia and New Zealand to deny me entrance into their territories
Shear Genius to take away my scissors
and Charlie to run away whimpering whenever he sees me...

Luckily, within 15 minutes of finishing the most atrocious dog-haircut in the history of domesticated animals, Charlie completely forgot that it had been me to wield the Scissors of Doom:

It helped that I threw his squeaky toy around the backyard for him for awhile:

*squeek squeek*

The Most Atrocious Haircut took some time to finish (give or take an hour and a half - the dog was hairy). Afters, Emm and I went our separate ways. Him to WoW and suchlike. Me to sewing, silk, socks and stoles:

Oooh, alliteration. I promised Mum I would finish the mock-up robes for her to wear to the Harry Potter release party at Powell's. But, since we've had so much difficulty with the sewing machine, I decided to test the waters before diving in.

So, I tried out this tutorial. Only, I had to change it because I didn't have interfacing and a 12" zipper (details, details). I used snap-tape instead and upholstery fabric to negate the need for interfacing. It all went well until I accidentally cut the fabric down the middle - forcing me to change the dimensions. At this point the bag will hold a ball of yarn and not much else. Ahwell.

At least we know the sewing machine works, right?

And the pink silk bag is my Lantern Moon project bag. I couldn't take how open the top was (balls of yarn falling on the floor isn't fun), so I used an awl to poke holes in the outer layer of the top hem. Elastic cord and a adjustable doohicky (no, I can't remember what it's called) make it easier to keep projects inside the bag.

And, now, the knitting. The Slighty Twisted sock, it turns out, doesn't fit me. I made the heel flap just a weeee bit too long. It fits Mum. I'm too far to care to frog, so Mum gets the pair.

*sigh*

I take comfort in the fact that the Mystery Stole is still mine. And pretty as ever. I'm not through clue 2 yet (the sock distracts me with it's flashy-flashy variegation), but I'm making progress without a single guess as to it's theme. Well, maybe one.

I'm a Classicist, so I should know this, but was there a Greco-Roman g-d of confusion?

pardon me

2007-07-15T23:58:00.000-07:00

while I wait for my brain to register...

Columbia Gorge daytrip

The family went to the Columbia River Gorge today. It's not that long a trip from Portland (1.5 hours each way), and it was absolutely lovely. We did have to get up inordinately early (for us) to get there before noon and to sightsee.

While we were there, we had the best meal I've had in Oregon (Hood River Hotel), found me some wading shoes to teach the dog to swim (partially successful), and all went down to the river:

... even the sock.

We got back to Portland just barely in time for me to grab my stuff and meet Opus at Twisted:

Oooh, look, traveling sock friends. And, just to make you jealous, I must inform you that the sock that Opus is knitting is for me and it's being knit up with ShiBui Sock yarn.

I just lost each and every single subscriber I have with that little tidbit, didn't I?

Opus and I spent an inordinate amount of time at the store, mostly fondling their sock yarn. I actually managed to escape without buying any more (buying the 'Smooshy' yesterday immunized me, I think). Opus was not so lucky, she got a skein of yarntini. Yum.

Across the street from Twisted is the coolest Ethiopian restaurant. We decided to hit them for dinner, as Opus had never tried Ethiopian food before:

Our waitress (with a heavy accent) was very impressed with our socks and had all sorts of questions. A little girl, running into the restaurant, also identified our WIPs as socks with some glee. Sort of a Red Letter Day, really - two people not guessing that we were making sweaters.

And from there I came home and collapsed. I think I shall go back to being horizontal now.

Red Letter Day

2007-07-14T20:29:00.000-07:00

It was so hot and humid today, I almost felt like I was back on the East Coast. We're expecting another thunderstorm tonight, which is shocking to me - 2 in one summer in Oregon? Strange.

This afternoon, I received four teasers - the 4 extra bobbins for my en route Journey Wheel:

*sigh*

After fixing the sewing machine (again) for Mum, cleaning, doing several loads of laundry, and slaying a small chimaera, I took the sock to Laurelhurst Park:

The sock didn't like the weather, either. But we fared better than either of the 'rents or the dog. It was quite pathetic, really, how droppy Charlie was - he wouldn't even play with the other dogs at the park. That was another first.

Because we were on the right side of town, I dragged Mum, Dad and Charlie to Twisted. Oh, yes, Charlie came in, too, to ooh's and ahh's. I liked the store. They've made an effort to stock unusual yarns, like recycled rayon and Tibetan hemp. The store's still new and their shelves are a little bare (good publicity has helped them with that), but I also really appreciated the fact that they had a wall of sock yarn. Sock yarn other stores in the area don't carry, like Cherry Tree Hill (drool), Woolarina, aaand Dreaming in Colour's 'Smooshy':

I'm sorry. I couldn't resist it's siren song. It kept whispering sweet nothings to me when the young ladies were chatting with Mum. 'Knit me! Knit me! I want to be a pair of Embossed Leaves socks! I know you want me... Knit me!"

Oh, right. Speaking of Embossed Leaves socks... (deep breath)... Mona Schmidt, the designer, has agreed to be the SKA's Mystery Sock designer for November! (little squee)

And that is all the news I have right now. So sleepy and we're getting up early to drive along the Columbia River Gorge to the Dalles. Expect lots of traveling sock photos tomorrow...

listen closely

2007-07-14T13:22:00.000-07:00

And you just might hear the 'thud!' of my mother falling off of the wagon.

She tried to get a prescription for a narcotic today. Luckily the doctor was either incredibly clever or unbelievably incompetent, because he wrote the prescription out incorrectly. None of us tried to stop her from doing this since we didn't know about it until it was too late.

The next week or two should be interesting. In a gum-gnashing, nail-biting, snippy sort of way.

I really wish someone would hire me already.

Until then, though, I shall knit like I'm being paid for it. Below are the Mystery Stole and my new traveling sock:

This sock is much better behaved than my last traveling socks and will thus be rewarded somehow. If you have any ideas on how to reward a sock, let me know.

Moving on. The landlord came by today, approved everything we'd done, and then left - all within 5 minutes. He's definitely my kind of landlord.

The Peace Corps was not so obliging. Upon inquiring as to my medical clearance status, I received this reply from my medical screening aide:

Greetings,
At this time, your medical file will need further review by our staff specialist. After the specialists have completed their review a letter, confirming the status of your medical review will be sent.
Regards,
X-X-X

I then called my medical screening aide, only to find that he wasn't in his office and still hasn't returned my call. Nice. I'm really going to have to start hounding these people more.

Good news? SKA has 350+ members on ravelry and we're starting a year-long sock challenge in August. I've even received a positive reply from the designer I contacted in regards to contracting a Mystery Sock pattern for this fall/ winter.

Bad news? Er, I'm officially terrified of my Bloglines subscription page. I'm so far behind on my feeds that I'm into the triple digits. I have a feeling that I've missed some important stuff, too. I've also not managed to send out Crimson's prize or Bulldogknit's goodies for her son. I also haven't forgotten the VACANT 1506 challenge, I'm just really really far behind on my plans. Expect it to emerge sometime in 2010 at this rate.

Someone please kick me.

can I have a do over?

2007-07-13T00:37:00.000-07:00

Today was one of those disconcerting, existential, surreal days. All day I felt wrong, like I was in the wrong body, living the wrong life. I couldn't knit anything. I didn't want to eat. And everything I touched turned to lead or broke.

Oy.

To make matters worse, the family was snippy again and I finally couldn't take it any longer. I snapped and started screaming. It wasn't pretty. But I've since apologized and sat in my corner trying to psychoanalyze myself.

First thing I noticed? Analyzing oneself isn't the easiest task in the world. Finally, I just admitted to myself that this is all probably part of the frustration of the move, being unemployed and still living with my parents.

Let's add a 'gavault' to that 'oy' above.

But, to make matters somewhat easier on us all, I come bearing more pictures of the Portland parks, and the PNW, from Lake Oswego:

The last one is something pretty cool and amazing (even for the 10-year-Girl-Scout) - a holly tree growing out of the stump of a long-dead cedar tree. Now, I've seen young trees growing out of the stumps of old ones, but they've always been the same type of tree. It was really cool to see a holly paired with a cedar.

And, on top of the pretty greeness, I also come bearing yarn p0rn:

You are looking at the LAST TWO skeins of Shi Bui Sock "Orchid". At the Sip'n'Knit tonight, I saw (omg, what's her name?) walking by with an armload of too-beautiful-to-be-real yarn and immediately asked if those skeins were what I thought they were.

They are. They're also the last two in the store. The other ones in the shipment have been on order for several knitters for the past 3 weeks. Realising this might be my last chance for another month (or more) to get the yarn I've coveted for weeks, I immediately pulled out my checkbook.

And, you want to know something sad?, they didn't even ask for my name or address this time. They have it all memorized. This is a bad, bad sign. And Opus didn't even stop me! Bad girl. She promised last week that she'd stop me the next time I tried to buy yarn.

*sigh*

After buying the yarn, waiting for it to be wound, and knitting a bit, we decided to leave at around 7:30-ish. I hadn't eaten and Opus hadn't eaten what we would call real food. And it was hot in there.

Just as we finished dinner and were leaving the restaurant, the sky opened and lightning laced across the sky in an eerily East-Coast-sort-of-way. The natives were all excited and immediately started counting between the flash and crash. I, instead, though about getting somewhere insulated.

Summer storms in D.C. meant either: A) flash floods, or: B) tornadoes.

But, I managed to get home (damp and frazzled) safe enough to lose my cool. Joy. I'm probably going to be hearing about this for weeks. Oh, well. It happens.

Tomorrow we get to clean the house because the landlord is coming by. Oooh, what fun. I'll even give you the Peace Corps update tomorrow, to keep the next post from being completely boring.

expecto soleam

2007-07-11T22:03:00.000-07:00

True to my word, I BO the last stitch on Bean's second bootie right as the previews started before HPatOP. I also only had 12" of yarn left. Is that kizmit or what?

The movie was fantastic. It is widely known that I strongly disapprove of the 1st and 3rd movies, for many reasons. But I liked this latest director's take on the HP universe - the Death Eaters were much cooler this time (in an evil sort of way), as was the Order (loved Tonks and Shacklebolt). The interpretation of the relationships of the 3 was closer to the way I read the books - neither saccharine nor sexual. I also approved of the actress who played Luna (great job) and the twins were as fun as ever. The special effects were even more impressive than the last movie. The final 30 mins are perfectly described as an apocalypse.

Go and see it. You'll definitely get your money's worth, and it'll be so much more entrancing on a large screen.

Moving on. Booties done meant I could spin for the Tour when I got home:

I love my charkha, but am even more excited to announce that Sheila at Journey Wheel emailed me today to let me know that my wheel would start it's journey to me tomorrow. Once I calm down enough, I'll send her a reply that goes beyond "SQUEE".

After that I got down to some knitting, and am very annoyed to report that I'm going to have to frog these two socks-IP:

Stretched, they'll fit a 7" foot. As my foot is 8" around... *sigh*. I think the sock yarn is punishing me for quitting on Titania's Revenge. I may just have to re-CO. Later. Much, much later. For now, I'll frog, rewind the ball, and CO a different pair of socks with different yarn.

Aaand, to cheer myself up I'll check the SKA on ravelry - last count was at 240 members.

ugh

2007-07-11T01:05:00.000-07:00

What a horrible day. 104 F.

We couldn't find the power cord for our sewing machine anywhere (I swear we opened every box we could find), and called every store in Portland about obtaining another one. This was after I spent over an hour online, trying to psychically beg the Brother Intl. website to work for a 5 whole minutes together.

So, the closest store with a cord in stock was in Woodburn - 40 mi south of us. Mum has been trying to get several sewing projects done for days now (wow, sound familiar?), and we decided it would be worth the time to get it now, instead of waiting for a new one to be stocked in two weeks closer by.

We drive. And it sucks. A lot. I don't know what's up with the crazies on I-5 lately, but I'm beginning to think there's some sort of airborne contagion localized to the Interstate that makes drivers psycho.

After a series of frustrating events we arrive at the Woodburn Sew & Vac. They start assembling the cord for us (apparently the power cord and the treadle are sold separately). During that time, Mum and I look around. We ask them for the correct type of bobbins, the lady staffer pulls out two bags behind the counter. Mum and I are excited, as the store is having a sale on Sulky threads, and carried several Clover tools I hadn't seen before.

On leaving, a different route home was chosen. 99-E. This route was quicker, safer, and prettier. I recommend it, if you don't mind stoplights in the towns.

We get home, planning to get to our separate crafting ventures after dinner. We make dinner and watch Eureka. After cleaning up, I locked myself in my room - planning to play on ravelry, knit and spin.

Dad knocks. The cord won't work. Can I fix it?

I have no idea where my parents got the idea that I'm some sort of sewing expert, but they have it all the same. Oy. I don't know.

It turns out the cord worked, it was the treadle that wouldn't work. $50+ and 80 mi for a cord that won't work. Mum was practically in tears and I just sat on the floor. We finally decided that it would be best to let Dad return the cord (Mum was livid). And the 2 bags of bobbins which, it turns out, don't fit our machine.

What a stupid, pointless day. And I only managed to get an 1" done on the booties for Beans. Arg. The booties, for your daily Knitting News, are nearly finished. They're taking so long because I am a freak and am knitting them at 9 sts/ inch. But I swear I'll get them done before the baby is too big for them.

Even if I have to knit through Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix tomorrow.

verdant

2007-07-09T19:36:00.001-07:00

I haven't knit a single stitch today. But I didn't really feel up to it for most of the day. I was having terrible femm issues earlier (too much information?) and only went out with Mum because I need the exercise. That said, I am really, really glad I went with her to the Hoyt Arboretum:

(My Tour de Fleece pic)

Mum and Charlie:

Mum throwing sticks for Charlie:

And the coolest tree roots ever:

It's a beautifully maintained place and the flora AND fauna are amazingly varied. After I took the last photo and we were on our way out of our little dell, a hummingbird (still unidentified) flew out of the creek and into a tree. I immediately grabbed Charlie and pointed the bird out to Mum, and I suppose the bird sensed that Mum is a member of the Audobon Society - it flew back down and hovered in front of us (I swear it was inspecting us) for a full minute or two. It was so magical and amazing. I've never seen a hummingbird so close (within 3') without glass between us.

After that, at the Visitor's Center, we met a really cool artist who we exchanged contact info with. Coolness abounds, as she's leaving for the Galapagos in 3 days! I nearly died of envy. The Galapagos islands are on my Top Ten List Of Places I Must Visit Before I Am: Old/ Blind/ Or Dead. *sigh*

Then came the dangers of stepping into a Fair Trade store. Mum and I have killed our older gauze shirts, so we got two. Along with a Panama hat each, a hand-stamped kerchief from Ghana, and a Lantern Moon bag for less than I've seen at LYSes. How cool is that? I now have that medium sized knitting bag I've been needing.

And, last but not least, the knitting content. It might interest you to know that Sock Knitters Anonymous now has 80 members! Woot :D And, I have a question (actually, several). Some craftsters mentioned that they'd be interested in buying my Spox pattern. How does one sell patterns thru Paypal? And how much would I charge? Is $5 too much?

I'm going to go knit, so I don't have to think about it...

snip. snip. snark.

2007-07-08T23:16:00.000-07:00

I don't know what's in the water or subliminal messages right now, but everyone in the family is so snippy. A person can't say the sky is blue without someone taking offense, "Did I say it wasn't?"

Oy. I ran away to the PDX Knit-Bloggers meet-up at Knit/ Purl today, just to escape the egg-shell covered floor. The ladies were very nice, very cheerful, and quite rowdy - I could hear them in the basement when I walked into the store.

Which reminds me. I found their group on ravelry, which I finally got invited onto last night! I'm so addicted. I've been searching patterns, adding pictures, and puttering about every spare moment I can. There are tons of lace knitters on already, so it's nice to see what they're working on and what they've got queued as well.

And, because they've started a new 'groups' section (and have asked for people to start groups of their own), I made up one: Sock Knitters Anonymous. Like any other group, we've got our 12 steps:

We admitted we were powerless over our desire to hand-knit socks and stash sock yarn.
Came to believe that a Power greater than ourselves could restore us to sanity.
Made a decision to turn our will and our lives over to the care of our LYSes as we understood Them.
Made a searching and fearless accurate inventory of Stashes.
Admitted to ravelry, to ourselves, and to other human beings the exact nature of our sock addiction.
Were entirely ready to frog any defects of knitting.
Humbly asked for knots to be removed from our skeins, hanks, and balls of yarn.
Made a list of all patterns we had started, stashed for, or designed on cocktail napkins, and became willing to start/ finish them all.
Finish sock WIPs wherever possible, except when to do so would injure them, the yarn, needles, ourselves, or others.
Continued to keep a stash inventory and when we buy more sock yarn, promptly admitted it.
Sought through trial and error to improve our conscious contact with sock knitting we understood It, praying only for knowledge of Turning Heels and the power to carry that out.
Having had a spiritual awakening as the result of these steps, we tried to carry this message to other sock knitters, and to practice these principles in all our affairs.

C'mon and join if you're on ravelry. Also, friend me if you're on, please! I've lost track of all the members I know online and my puter is soooo slow that searching is nigh impossible :(

Campanula mitts pattern

2007-07-08T18:04:00.000-07:00

I've been meaning to post this pattern for a while now (for myself, in all honesty), because I like wearing my mitts and they're a fun, quick knit and they keep my hands really warm in the winter.

SIZE

Adult women's M (change the gauge to change sizes)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Hand circumference: 7.5 inches
Will stretch to comfortably fit up to 9 inches - the lace pattern is ribbed and stretches comfortably.

MATERIALS

150 yards fingering - sport weight yarn
Set of 5 US #5/3.75mm double-point needles
Tapestry needle
waste yarn

GAUGE

24 sts = 4 inches in stockinette stitch
32 rows = 4 inches in stockinette

LACE PATTERNS:

R1: *YO, K3, SK2P (sl 1, k2tog, psso), K3, YO, K1* across

R2 & all even rows: K across
R3: *K1, YO, K2, SK2P, K2, YO, K2* across
R5: *K2, YO, K1, SK2P, K1, YO, K3* across
R7: *K3, YO, SK2P, YO, K4* across

R1 - 3 & 5: *P1, K3, P1* across
R4: *P1, YO, SK2P, YO, P1* across

CREDIT:
All photos were taken by TheBon & the lace charts were made using this cool FREE Knit Chart maker.

LEFT MITT:

CO 40 sts
Work rows 1 -7 of Horseshoe lace.
At the end of row 8 - knit 2 sts from N1 to N4, new row starts here.
Work row 1 of Campanula lace - transferring 2 sts from each needle to the next (i.e. N2 -> N1, N3 -> N2, N4 -> 3), effectively redistributing the sts after moving the starting point over 2 sts.
Continue rows 2- 5 of Campanula lace.
Work 5 more repeats of Campanula lace.
Inc 5 sts next row - 4 for the palm by Kf&b into the first st on every needle. Inc 1 thumb gusset st by Kf&b of last st on N2. (45 sts total)
Work row 2 of pattern, making sure to P extra palm sts and K the thumb st.
Row 3 - continue in pattern until the thumb st: M1L, K1, M1R, work remaining sts in pattern. Inc on either side of the thumb gusset every 3rd row, working the surrounding sts in campanula pattern.
Finish increasing on row 4, with 15 thumb sts.
Next row (row 5): Work to 1 st before thumb gusset, Kf&b, place thumb sts on waste yarn, P1 from N3 and Sl last stitch from N2 over it to join in the round. Finish row in pattern. (44 sts)
Work 1 final repeat of lace pattern.
P 2 rows.
PBO (BO whilst purling, not knitting)

THUMB:
Place gusset sts on needles as follows: 3 on N1, and 4 on N2, 3, 4.
Row 1: Kf&b, K13, Kf&b. (17 sts)
Row 2: K1, slip last st on N4 over 1st st on N1 - to join in round. Knit to end.
Row 3 & 4: K across
Row 5 &6: P across
Row 7: PBO.

Weave in ends.

RIGHT MITT: make as for left.

with a full plate

2007-07-07T20:30:00.000-07:00

What have I been up to these past couple of days? Oh, well, let's see...

Mum and I tried to start reupholstering her set of 8 Edwardian oak dining chairs yesterday (we spent the day before in Hell Depot and Jo-Ann's getting supplies). After a practice run on a very strange footstool (has anyone ever heard of cedar wood shavings being used as cushion filling??), Mum and I pulled out the first chair seat. "If we can get two of these done today, I'll be happy," she told me.

Only to find that the chairs were really well made - oak seat frames, dozens upon dozens of iron tacks, silk velvet upholstery, silk batting under the seats, linen broadcloth under the silk batting and then 4" of wool rag encased horse-hair filling the cushions. All afternoon yesterday, we'd pull up another layer only to find that the frame was that much further away.

"Mum, we're going to be lucky if we get one chair a day done!" She waved me off, determined to finish two chairs by 6. After a couple more hours of pulling out iron tacks, ripping off jute webbing and oil-cloth, Mum sat down, huffing.

"We're might not get this chair done today," she finally admitted.

And we didn't. After another hour or so, she and Dad finally agreed that we might just want to consider the possibility of making plywood copies of the frames (er, frame, as we've only managed to strip one) and reupholster them.

After that, we had to clean up quickly to meet with some old friends who were in town, visiting their son. Our families had been in the same congregation in MD, so they called us when they were flying this way. We took them to a truly authentic Chinese restaurant and then home for dessert. I snapped a shot right before they left:

Sooo, that should explain why I haven't made that much progress on the Mystery Stole (scarf in my case) 3 or le Tour de Fleece...

And why I ache all over and still can't get the dirt completely out from under my finger nails (arrrrg). What's that? Here's a close-up of the stole IP:

I finally went back to the evil that is known as Jo-Ann's this afternoon to get a magnetic board and line magnifier. Last night I managed to cut and paste all of the charts into one file and printed it out - just so I wouldn't have to flip back and forth between the charts for the L and R sides. Of course, the charts are now tiny and require a magnifying rod - which is fine, because it clips to the stand.

Project specs? I'm completely crazy, but still smitten with the bamboo. I'm using Addi 2.5 mm's (US 1.5) instead of the recommended 3.5 mm (US 4). My stole's going to be smaller than intended, but I preferred the look of the lace knit with the smaller needles. Oh, and I am mad in love with Addi Turbo lace needles right now.

I'm also sorry (and embarrassed) to have to admit that I'm further behind than ever in my bloglines subscripts. My laptop and wireless card just aren't up to the new LAN set-up we got, so I'm stuck using the family PC. 30 mins a day to check my email, Peace Corps status, and other web stuff is clearly not enough. Hopefully, I'll get the cash together soon (after I get a job) to update my little Dell.

Until then? *sigh*

Well, on the bright side, maybe I'll have more time to knit with less internet access.

I am weak

2007-07-05T23:58:00.000-07:00

Because yesterday was so traumatic, I promised myself that I could CO any project I wanted, free of guilt. I didn't get the chance to last night - I spent the rest of the evening frogging my Titania's Revenge. The pattern is great, but I'm just not together enough to knit it right now. Sooo... different sock project. And a different lace project.

I've been wavering on the subject of the Mystery Stole 3 for several days, after seeing it on Sunflowerfairy's blog. When the Harlot mentioned that the deadline to join was tomorrow, I seized my "guilt-free CO" card and went for it. I'm signed up, I've printed out the info and Clue 1. This evening at Knit/ Purl's Sip 'n' Knit Night, I even bought both yarn and needles for it - 3.4 oz of silvery grey bamboo by Habu Textiles and US 3 Addi lace needles.

I have to say I've finally figured out the reasoning behind the Sip 'n' Knit Night - the workers at K/P are devious creatures. They give us glasses of champagne, leave us in the presence of luscious yarns and stay open for an extra 3 hours.

Devious, I tell you.

After Opus and I browsed, spent too much money and played in the yarn, I got Opus to get a shot of my cotlin camisole:

ETA*: PROJECT SPECS

Yarn: Knit Picks Cotlin in "Royal Plum"
Needles: 40" Denise circulars, 4 mm/ US 6
Gauge: 5.5 sts/ inch in stockinette
Size: 42" bust
Pattern: I made it up as I went
Recipient: ME!
Date started: April 5, 2007
Date finished: July 3, 2007

I swear to you, it looks more flattering in person. We had a heck of a time taking a picture of it. Oy. But it's done, it fits, and it's comfortable to wear. S'enough for me.

Other news? I finally have my little package for Bulldogknits done, and Crimson's prize ready (yes, I am very very slow). I'm working on the package for Stephieface and Beans and TheBon's prizes next. I've even taken to carrying the booties-in-progress with me everywhere, I swear. The lace shan't distract me too much.

I hope.

*edited to add

worst Independence Day ever

2007-07-04T23:22:00.000-07:00

Vancouver sucked. Drivers were crazy (and drunk). The guards at the celebration wouldn't let me take my knitting needles in. We had to walk a 1/2 mi back to the car to put them back. People got increasingly drunk as darkness fell (shooting off more and more fireworks over our heads*) and one idiotic woman nearly ran over my brother.

Seriously - I had to grab his shirt and yank him back**. Mum was screaming (as were everyone else watching). That was when we decided to leave - in the middle of the fireworks show, too.

I managed a couple of shots before it was too dark (we arrived around 7 pm). Here're Mum and Emm on top of the hill we sat on (however brief a period):

And here's the view we had:

... right about where the car tried to drive over the hill, a couple dozen families, and my brother. Genius, really.

Sooo... haven't gotten any knitting done. The majority of the day was spent at Jo-Ann's and Home Depot. Both of which Mum and I have vowwed never to return to.

All in all, today sucked. I'm going to go and knit something. Screw startitis. I'm casting on whatever I feel like right now.

* there's a reason these things are illegal in many states.
** which probably wouldn't have helped in the long run - I was standing right behind him. Thank goodness Mum and several onlookers were screaming.

soooo tired

2007-07-02T22:57:00.000-07:00

Spent most of the morning and afternoon moving and unpacking, yes you guessed it, yet more boxes! I'm beginning to think they reproduce in the night. Or move themselves about. By 3:30 pm, I had cleared out the center of the garage, redeposited 3x my weight in boxes on the top shelves of two closets, and managed to finally strong-arm the shed in the back yarn open. Emm got to clean the house. Dad's down in Eugene prepping the old house for sale. And Mum was in bed, recovering from her spinal tap.

Oooh... fun.

By 4, Emm and I were dirty, sweaty, and dusty. He collapsed in front of his computer. Me, with of my spinning on the couch. I managed to fill my first quill this afternoon:

And then started on a second one...

This little plot just may work. It would be nice to manage not to break the thread when plying every couple yards or so. I just hope I'm winding the quill right. Strange as it may sound, there is a science to this - shuttle bobbins for weaving have to be wound just so, as do cones of yarn for weaving or knitting. It'd be just my luck to wind it in exactly the wrong way.

After spinning for a bit, I got back to work on my cami. As it languishes in my knitting basket right now, it looks something like this:

(only not so dark and blurry)

The side seams, armscyes, and most of the ends are woven in. All that's left to knit is the neckline and to weave in the ends from the finishing. I had such a throbbing headache by 8 pm, I threw in the towel for the night. The family was so exhausted we actually ordered pizza for dinner.

Oy.

We have to go down to Eugene tomorrow to finish packing up Mum's artwork. Someone please ~~kidnap~~ rescue me in the night. I'll pay you in yarn...

teensy tiny

2007-07-01T19:21:00.000-07:00

No post yesterday due to the oh-so-fun ER visit Mum made early Sat morning. I stayed up with her and Dad, until it proved futile and that she really needed medical treatment (around 3 am). She was diagnosed with a severe migraine (vomiting, auras, etc) and got to have tons of fun tests. I didn't go along, but I got to hear all about the MRI, CAT scan, and Spinal Tap today. Eeek.

Sooo, needless to say, we were all quite useless yesterday and are still a bit off-colour. Even so, I've been working fiendishly on my current WIPs and several teensy-tiny items for various babies I'm distantly acquainted with. One set of goodies is finished, another started. It's so odd to be working on booties that can sit together in the palm of my hand. How were we ever all that small?

I mentioned a contest on Friday, didn't I? Maura gave me a fun idea - the VACANT 1506 Contest. I'm still working out the details, but I should have it all together in a day or two. I also, ha, have TheBon and Crimson's prizes from the Wacky Ducky Contest sorted out (you two couldn't thwart me forever with your vague answers, no siree). The prizes'll probably go out at the same time as the baby gifts. Now all I need are their (the babies) Mum's addresses.

Stephieface, I gave you warning, now I need your address to send along some things for Beans. I know you read my blog ;D As for Bulldogknits, I'm bad and lost her address and'll have to email her in a non-creepy way to ask for it again...

This'll be interesting. And, just to prove I've been knitting, I'll end with a progress photo of the progress of Titania's Revenge and the back of my cotlin cami:

Toodle-oo.

Seaside socks (FO &pattern)

2007-06-29T22:11:00.000-07:00

I finished the Seaside socks for Mum this afternoon, between rushing around unpacking more and more boxes. A guy at Knit/Purl expressed interest in the pattern last night, so I thought I'd type it up.

Credit: Crest O' The Waves is an old Shetland lace pattern (I found it in Walker's A Treasury of Knitting Patterns). And I used this really cool FREE knit chart program to make the two lace charts. Here we go...

SIZE

Adult women's M (change the gauge to change sizes - 8 sts/ inch would be ideal for a woman's L/ men's S, etc)

FINISHED MEASUREMENTS

Circumference (unstretched): approx. 7 inches
Will stretch to comfortably fit up to 9 inches.

MATERIALS

Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock [80% superwash merino, 20% nylon; 215yd per 2oz skein]; 2 skeins "Seaside" colourway
1 set US #1.5/2.5mm double-point needles
Tapestry needle
Cable needle or stitch holder

GAUGE

36 sts = 4 inches in stockinette stitch

NOTES:
The pattern is written for 1 sock/ 2 circs. For information on how to knit 2 socks/ 2 circs, visit my Socktoberfest tutorial. To convert the pattern to 5 DPNS: circ#1 = N2, N3; circ#2 = N1, N4.

The Cuff Crest O' The Wave lace pattern is worked over a multiple of 12 sts (in the round):

R1: K across
R2: P across
R3: K across
R4: P across
R5, 7, 9, 11: *K2tog, K2tog, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, SSK, SSK, K1* across
R6, 8, 10, 12: K across

The Instep Crest O' The Wave lace pattern is worked over 35 sts (or a multiple of 12 + 11 sts):

R1: K across
R2: P across
R3: K across
R4: P across
R5, 7, 9, 11: *K2tog, K2tog, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, SSK, SSK, K1* TWICE, K2tog, K2tog, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, K1, YO, SSK, SSK
R6, 8, 10, 12: K across

PATTERN:
Cuff:

CO 72 sts, divided evenly between 2 circular needles (36 sts each)
Work 6 repeats of the Cuff Crest O' The Wave pattern (72 rows total)
Work rows 1 - 11 Cuff lace pattern again
On row 12 (a knit row), move the last stitch on circ#1 (the K1 st between dec's) to circ#2. Circ#1 will have 35 sts, circ#2 37.
Knit across circ#1

Heel: (worked on circ#2)

Row 1: *Sl1, K1* to last st, end K1
Row 2: Sl1, P across
Repeat Rows 1 & 2 17 more times (total of 36 rows)

Turn:

K 21, SSK, K1, turn
Sl1, P7, P2tog, P1, turn
Sl 1, K to 1 st before gap, SSK, K1
Sl 1, P to 1 st before gap, P2tog, P1
Continue working heel (dec'ing 1 st per row) until all sts have been worked. End with P row.

GUSSETS:

K across heel sts, pick up and k 18 chain sts + 1 st between heel and instep (prevents gap/ hole)
On circ#1: P across instep sts (Row 2 of instep lace pattern)
On circ#2: pick up and knit 1 st between heel and instep + 18 chain sts. (94 sts TOTAL). Knit across heel sts, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1.
Circ#1: K across (Row 3 of instep lace pattern)
Circ#2: K1, SSK, K across
Circ#1: Purl across (Row 4 of instep lace pattern)
Circ#2: K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1
Circ#1: Work row 5 of lace pattern, ending with SSK on 3rd repeat
Continue decreasing gusset sts on circ#2 and working instep lace pattern on circ#1, until 70 sts remain - 35 sts on each.

FOOT:

Continue in instep lace pattern on circ#1, and K across circ#2 until foot measures from heel 2" less than desired length.

TOE:

Row 1 (starting with circ#1): K1, SSK, K to last 3 sts, K2tog, K1
Row 2: K across
Repeat Rows 1 & 2 until 19 sts remain.
Repeat Row 2 until 9 sts remain.
Using Kitchner st, graft sts on circ#1 to circ#2.

Repeat for second sock, unless you followed my tutorial ;D Please drop me a line if you finish one, a pair, find mistakes, or have comments!

Tomorrow: another contest and Titania's Revenge!

quick little update

2007-06-28T23:51:00.000-07:00

Didn't get much done today, but I definitely feel better. It was cool and drizzly and humid all day, making work difficult - humidity and I aren't fast friends. But, we managed to find the dog park at Mt Tabor (no one was there, of course) before taking Charlie back to Lauralhurst. No pictures today, sorry.

After that, and running around aimlessly some more (Mum and I are such experts at getting lost), I got around to meet Opus for tonight's Sip'n'Knit at Knit/Purl. We had planned to meet at 5, grab some lunch beforehand, then go back to the shop. I ended up knitting for close to half an hour - Opus forgot how bad rush hour traffic on the Met can be. More knitting time for me, eh?

I didn't manage to escape the store without spending money (who could?), but I kept the bill down by just getting two balls of Panda Cotton in "Seascape" - I'm hoping it'll be a better match for Pomatomus than the Lorna's was. Cross your fingers for me.

Small point of contention - Mum insisted on picking me up from the gathering. She has this thing about women walking anywhere, alone, at night. It was alright for me to take the bus into downtown, but nothing would convince her to let me take the bus home. Ahwell. Opus found it bemusing. I explained it away by citing the fact that Mum's a Jewish Mother - it's her job to worry about these things. I don't mind it, but other people seem to have difficulty with it. Whatever, I guess we should all be glad she's not their mother. I won't deny that she drives me crazy at times (just look thru the archives), but I'll grant her leeway on this point.

Anyway. Onto the toes of the Seaside socks - looking good. Hopefully I'll get them finished tomorrow and blocked on my sock blockers (woot! first pair). Then I can get to casting on Titania's Revenge... Mmmm, sock yarn.

no longer VACANT

2007-06-27T22:59:00.000-07:00

It turns out that our house is not invisible to the eyes of mail carriers, in a different dimension, or "VACANT 1506" as previously claimed.

Right now you're thinking: "What?"

Oh, let me explain. I ordered a pattern, Titania's Revenge (to use with my lovely lovely Puck's Mischief), from Blue Moon a fortnight ago. I waited. And waited. And waited. Finally, when I returned home after BSG, I emailed them - wondering where the heck my pattern was.

I imagine it was sitting in their office, flocked by similiar parcels of patterns or yarn, waiting for a 'correct' address. Apparently the mail carrier had deemed our house "VACANT 1506" (whatever that means), the pattern undeliverable, and sent it back to Blue Moon. I was told that if I gave them an acceptable address, they'd send it to me (and charge shipping fees again).

I explained that, no, our house isn't vacant - erm, we've been residing here for, what, like, 3 weeks-ish? The furniture has been here at least that long. And that I've received several packages at this address without a problem - clearly the mail carrier who is responsible is delusional.

The very nice customer service person offered to send it again (free of additional charges), but asked for the names of the other people in the house - so that there'd be no excuse for USPS to turn it back again. Her clever plot worked and my new pattern arrived this afternoon:

Now I just need to get my Addi's free (3" to the toes!), and I can start on 'em.

on the low down

2007-06-26T22:12:00.000-07:00

One of the great resentments of my life is my clinical depression. Before it's onset in my early 20's, I had much more energy than I do now. I just did more. Now there are good days and bad days. Today wasn't the worst, but I felt completely useless for most of the day. I've taken two separate 1 hour naps to take the edge off. But, the few times I tried to get things done, they were disastrous. I broke one of my favourite earrings and my earring stand - forcing me to back away from finishing unpacking my room for the upteenth time.

Instead - between naps - I tried to help Mum unpack the kitchen, helped Dad with the finances (mostly by keeping him from throwing them across the room), and took Charlie for a long walk (with Mum) at Laurelhurst Park:

The park is quite impressive for it's size and location - in fact, it made me think of some of the choicer parts of Central Park. There's a large pond with ducks, geese, and a great blue heron that likes to fly around the lake and be admired. The park also has some off-leash areas, Charlie was pleased to discover.

I took a couple more shots of the flora and landscaping - the entire park is located in a bowl, almost a miniature valley, which is probably why it seems so intimate.

Otherwise? Not much else to report. No news from Journey Wheel, no news from the Peace Corps. No new FO's.

But, I have been spinning on my brand-new Spindlewood Co. mini-drop spindle and I loves it muchly. It spins forever and so evenly. St M mentioned to me that some spinners she knew had suggested placing straws on the shafts of her spindles - to make removing/ unwinding/ plying the yarn easier.

We'd both had problems with this concept. She couldn't find the right sized straw, so I decided to go the paper-quill route (Emmos generously donated a piece from her stationary on Saturday for me to make said quill). Unfortunately, the quill kept coming off:

Aargh.

So, this afternoon, I had a brainwave - a rubberband below the quill would hold it on as needed and could be removed easily (unlike double-sided tape, my other idea):

Which meant I got to go back to spinning without worrying about the yarn and quill sliding off of the spindle shaft at any moment. In case you're wondering - the spindle is made from Red Heart wood and a maple burl. The fiber (1 oz) is a Romeldale lamb/ tussah/ silk noil blend from Crosspatch fibers, called "Lily in the Starlight". It spins beautifully and makes for a very soft and lofty lace weight.

At the moment I am dreadfully far behind on my Bloglines subscripts - over 149 posts to catch up on, but I'm down from the 400+ count of three days ago. Going without internet for a couple of days = badness. Hopefully I'll catch up with them within the next couple of days. Of course, all y'all could make this easier on me and not update so frequently ;P

... Just a thought.

playing catch-up, pt 2

2007-06-25T05:05:00.000-07:00

Someone was nudging me, so I surfaced from the depths of sleep to see an-Emmos-shaped entity standing over me, radiating anxiety.

"It's 10:15," she informed me, as I peered at her without my glasses, wondering what was going on. The information settled. I swore loudly and with some proficiency, threw my blankets off and rolled off the air mattress.

We were due at Knit/Purl at 10:30, to meet Opus.

Somehow, less than 10 minutes later, we were in Emmos' car, driving like lunatics. It must be mentioned that my mother aided us in this timely departure - by tracking items down for us, throwing sweaters (hers) at us, and even venturing out to the car in her PJ's to find the Portland Metro map for me. Mum definitely earned her Jewish Mother status yesterday.

Three slightly belated knitters arrived at our destination to find Opus knitting on the corner. We called to her, circled the block several times, and finally found parking 2 blocks away.

"I should have realised this," she called to us as we rushed over, "but since it's Sunday, they don't open until 12."

Oops. Okay. Time to reassess. St M and Opus both needed to visit an ATM. We three needed breakfast. So we set off, first hitting The Pearl Bakery (dangerous, wonderful place to visit), then Anthropologie (it was on the way to WaMu, I swear!), and finally WaMu.

It was 11:20. We still had 40 minutes to kill. "Are there any knit shops nearby you wanted to hit, before we go back to Knit/Purl?" Opus asked. Indeed, there was. Knit Knot Studio. We headed over and were sidetracked by Cargo. 13th St in the Alphabet District is a dangerous place to go for your wallet, lemme tell you.

We arrived at Glisan, wandered around perplexed and discovered that Knit Knot wasn't open on Sundays. Blast. "Let's call the rest of those stores on your list, before we go to them," Emmos suggested. My cell was produced and St M got the job of calling and getting hours for all the stores we'd chosen. Our choices were narrowed to Knit/ Purl, Lint, The Yarn Garden, and Abundant Yarn & Dyeworks. We also decided to try and hit L'Occitaine at some point during the day (before we crossed the river).

We arrived back at Knit/Purl soon after calling the stores on the list, and the girls were suitably impressed. Knit/Purl is quite easily my favourite knit shop ever. They carry high-end yarns that are hard to find, have their own yarn & pattern line, and always have great customer service.

When I was asked if I needed anything, I immediately inquired into the possibility of a special order from Habu Textiles. I explained that, after several failed attempts, I still hadn't managed to get cobweb yarn for the Wedding Ring Shawl. I had seen on Habu's website that they carried a gorgeous silk yarn that fit the shawl's requirements perfectly. But, several months ago, I had been quite disappointed to find that Habu has a minimum order amount of $1000. Eep.

In the end, it took two ladies, the Habu sample book, and a blood oath from me to place an order for degummed Tassar Silk Organizine. I paid a deposit for half of the estimated price, sighed over now-empty bank account (no more yarn for me!), and went to help the girls with their purchases.

As Emmos was paying for her yarns (Shibui sock!), I caught this shot of the group:

From there we drove to Lint. I must admit that I have a mixed review for this store. In the past I've had much better customer service than we received yesterday. There's no arguing that Lint is a great store to visit for knitting accessories and basic yarns like Rowan, Debbie Bliss, and Brown Sheep. But the girls were clearly turned off by the fact that the woman staffing was not impressed with us, nor willing to help us with our inquiries. We left a bit disappointed.

"They're usually much better," Opus said as we left, "it's probably because it's a Sunday..."

Next was L'Occitaine because the girls (Opus excluded) had been coveting my tinted Shea Butter - for lips and cheeks. After spending too much money there (I was good, I swear), we grabbed lunch. Mmmm... tempura.

We then crossed the river to hit The Yarn Garden, my now 2nd favourite knit store in Portland. Their selection of yarns is impressive, they join onto a cafe, have some fabulous sock yarns and pretty decent customer service. I ended up buying a set of Brittany US 1.5 DPNs, signing up for a rewards card (the girls helped me fill it) and contenting myself to coming back when I had money. St M did much better, as they were having a sale on Noro and found a cashmere blend to die for. Emmos bought several balls of sock yarn (are we seeing a trend here?).

By this point we were completely exhausted and still had a yarn store left. We also had less than an hour to find it. I was not the best navigator and we managed to be superbly lost. By some manner of grace, we ended up at Abundant Yarn & Dyeworks 10 minutes before closing.

I have a fairly good review for them. They had a huge selection of Lorna's Laces - yarns and roving (!) - and also carried other spinning fiber. Again, since I was po'r, I only bought a set of DPN's (KA US 0's). But, St M got several hanks of handdyed superwash roving. They, like The Yarn Garden, had a cafe attached. I've definitely bookmarked them to visit again when I have money. The fact that they had some naturally dyed roving was also impressive. I wouldn't visit them for my daily yarn needs (too far away, hard to find, and the selection wasn't as varied as I'd like), but their roving is more than enough to tempt me.

From there we headed back north, dropped Opus off at a Met station - me promising to meet up with her at Knit/Purl's weekly knit night. We three headed back home, completely and utterly exhausted.

As Mum made dinner for us (before the girls had to drive back to Eugene), I snapped this shot of the weekend's haul:

From BSG, in order of purchase:

A Spindlewood Co. square mini spindle, weighing in at 5/8 oz (been wanting one of these for a looooong while)
Women's M sock blockers by Fiber Trends
Cherry Tree Hill supersock (on sale!) in Peacock and 1 oz of Crosspatch Creations fiber
4 oz of the softest wool top, grown in Oregon - a Cormo x Targhee x Merino mix.
Simply gorgeous sock yarn that was handdyed in Oregon (nope, can't remember the booth, but I'll post the info on the band when I use it)
And, la creme de la creme - Heirloom Knitting and Prehistoric Textiles. Both of which I have been trying to obtain for... too long.

Yesterday:

L'Occitaine verbena/ citrus shampoo
Brittany birch 5" US 1.5 DPNs
KA 5" US 0 DPNs

And that is everything. Last night, after the girls left, I fell into bed before 7 pm and slept thru 'til this morning. I have a doctor's appt in Eugene at 10 am, so now I have to get ready for that. Oooh, fun, more driving. I have a feeling that I'm never going to want to see inside a car ever again, very very soon.

playing catch-up, pt 1

2007-06-23T23:19:00.000-07:00

Real internet! Yaaaaaaay. So, here's that picture of Portland from the top of Mt Tabor I've been promising:

And the ducky and yarny goodies Penny sent me:

The past two days I've been moving around a lot: Portland to Eugene to St Paul to Portland. In Eugene, we got ready for the Black Sheep Gathering and the Sheep-to-Shawl competition:

The Sinister Spinsters

We placed 4th, in case you're wondering. We all went for yarn-therapy because of the trauma of the competition (our loom kept breaking down). I'll post pix of my haul laters. I promise.

My 'sea-anemone' hair (courtesy of Emmos):

(I dyed my hair for TheBon's wedding the night after the competition)

St M, Emmos and I slaved away for the 12 hours after S-t-S trying to get a wraplan done for the baby of a friend (the shower was this afternoon)...

And every once in a while, Niki (Emmos' cat), would check our progress:

A different version of the wraplan than the prototype...

Possibly not the final version, though.

Anyway. Literally as Emmos ran out the door to deliver the wraplan, St M and I started getting ready for TheBon's wedding. I hate make-up and I hate panty-hose, it must be said. But I wore 'em both. Emmos got back from her errands and dashed into her closet. Literally 5 minutes later, we ran out the door and hit the road. We managed to just make it to The Oak Grove before the service. I took tons of pictures:

TheBon's wedding

The service was sweet and short (my favourite descriptives). Bonnie's dress was gorgeous, as was her lace shawl (a true wedding ring shawl). Everything was great. But now I'm home and tired, and I'm going to bed. St M and Emmos and Opus and I are going on a Portland yarn crawl tomorrow - I'm gonna need all the rest I can get.

Ooooh, shiny and yellow

2007-06-20T18:00:00.000-07:00

I've just signed up for this:

And recommend you do the same if you're a spinner. How much fun is this gonna be? It totally explains the very strange urge I got to buy a sunflower-yellow shirt at the Nordstorm Rack this afternoon. I didn't, but now I know my urge to wear yellow is completely natural ;D

Here're the 'rules' ('cept they're not):

Sign up at The Tour de Fleece(on Craftster) or at Star's blog.
Spin every day the Tour rides, if possible. Saturday July 7th through Sunday July 29th. Days of rest: Monday, July 16th, Tuesday July 24th. (Just like the actual tour)
Spin something challenging Wednesday July 25th. (The last hard climbing mountain stage in the Pyrenees - Col d’Aubisque)
Take a button if you want one. Then we can use the button on our blogs in show of solidarity. Take it from here or grab a clean one from the flickr pool.
Wear yellow on Sunday July 29th to announce victory. Why not wear yellow on any day you feel particularly successful? (Yellow is the color of the race leader in the Tour - but here we are all 'race leaders')
Other colors if desired: Green (sprinter - think FAST), Polka-dot (climber - as in uphill), and white (rookie)

Hopefully my Journey wheel will have arrived by then (fingers crossed). I'm getting (just a bit) worried, since I haven't heard from Sheila in awhile. But... I don't want to bother them over something trivial, when they're fixing it up for me because they're nice.

Other news? Tammy got the yarn (and stitch markers) I sent and Penny knows I love my ducks, even if I'm afraid to upload a picture any larger than a button on the free Wi-Fi (seriously, it took, like, 2 mins for the button).

Erm. Lemme see. Today was spent doing something completely materialistic consumeristic and ... oh, alright. I went clothing shopping. I needed something to wear over my little black dress, for TheBon's wedding on Sat. I found a little black lacy sweater at Ann Taylor Loft. Don't worry, the little black ensemble is completely decent, I would never wear anything inappropriate to a wedding. It's an evening event, so I get to wear semi-formal clothing.

The next hurdle to cross in my wedding preparations is getting the little black ensemble to Eugene. Dad was going to drive me down (he had* business in Eugene), but now I might be on the train. And, then, of course there's the question of transporting the drum carder for Sheep-to-Shawl on Friday.

This'll be interesting. What's the weight limit on Amtrak?

*Note the use of the use of the perfect tense. I.e. he no longer has business in Eugene. Oy.

The MSN hates me

2007-06-19T18:01:00.000-07:00

*sulks*

Since I'm deeply afraid the wi-fi'll die on me (yet again), I'm going to keep this short and sweet:

The Seaside socks are past their gussets
Penny sent me a lovely, and very ducky, package but I can't post pictures yet *more sulking* because the MSN hates me
More boxes have been unpacked
Mum and I climbed Mt Tabor yesterday (don't recommend it to the faint-hearted) and I took a lovely photo of the view from the top, but (yep, you guessed it) can't put it up because the MSN hates me.
Found a cute knittery and cafe down the street. But, in my expert opinion, I'm afraid they need more yarn.
Found an organic butcher (inside an organic shop, yay)
Sent a package to Tammy today as a 'thank you' (note to self: send her an email so she doesn't suspect a letter-bomb)
Went to bank, PO, and DMV to change address. Woot, lines are such fun.

And, now, we get to find out if I can post at all...

ver' quick update

2007-06-18T00:35:00.001-07:00

Ver' tired. Haven't gotten a full night's rest in nearly a week.
Got earplugs - I can actually hear my father snore through two walls. I have no idea how my Mum shares a room with him.
More unpacking done today. Found the DVD player and the toaster and baking supplies. Woot.
Dad and Emm drove to Eugene and back today to return the U-Haul truck.
Not much knitting done - heels turned on socks and gussets being decreased. Got a headache every time I tried to knit, probably from looking down too much. Need to learn how to learn to knit whilst holding the project aloft.
I've lost another 3 lbs.
Took Charlie on a ver' long walk this morning, and Portland is definitely called the City of Roses for a reason. Look at the roses growing in our front yard:

(also finally figured out how to resize photos)

Other than that? Not much to report. Still haven't unpacked my room (or my stash). Why am I bothering to update my blog? Because I took a picture this morning. I'll try to be more interesting tomorrow, I promise.

We're heeeeere.

2007-06-15T21:56:00.001-07:00

Sorry for the itsy bitsy pictures, but I'm on Portland free Wi-Fi at the moment, and since it's offered by MSN it inherently hates Blogger. Sooo... clickies if you want to see them bigger.

We got up at 9 am when the movers arrived an hour early and started frantically packing (well, I showered first, I can't say as much for my brother). After 4 hours of intensive boxing and sorting, the kitchen was packed and Mum and I were thoroughly exhausted. The boys hadn't finished loading the truck and actually suggested leaving my stuff behind because 'there wasn't enough room'.

Right. Nuh-uh. Mum and I left about an hour earlier than the boys and, alas, I didn't get to test my Contortionist Knitting abilities as I had hoped. The trip was stop-and-go the entire way, so I had to hold onto Lapis' tank with both hands all the way to the house*. I suppose I could have tried knitting with my feet (I can write with my right foot), but it didn't seem feasible as my feet were resting on two bags and ensconced in shoes. Thus is my sad excuse for not making any sock progress.

But, I do bring yarn p0rn! When we went to open the door of our new rental house, I noticed some interesting bulges in the doormat. Our nice postal worker had hidden several packages under the mat! That's a first. Tammy, lovely wonderful person that she is, sent me Socks That Rock! I mentioned to her at the Harlot's Powell's event that I was severely disappointed that I had never managed to get Socks That Rock lightweight yarn in Puck's Mischief, so she sent me some! How sweet is she? And it's sooooo pretty...

I simply must cast on with this yarn ASAP. And I already have a 'thank you' gift arranged, mwahaha. Think lavendar-ish. Anyway, that little parcel totally made up for the 6 hours of sleep I got, packing, moving, unloading, and unpacking many, many boxes and huge pieces of furniture.

Back to the honking big furniture. Dad and Emm (and Charlie) arrived about 1.5 hours after us (Mum and I went grocery shopping in that time), and we immediately got to work, so that everyone would have a bed to sleep in tonight (and maybe some clothes to wear in the morning):

We didn't quite manage the 'clothes to wear in the morning' angle for Mum & Dad as their dressers were the first pieces to be loaded on the truck. Since my stuff was the last to go in, and the first out (I think there might be some envy about that), so I actually have a furnished room at the moment:

All I need to do is summon up the energy to get up, walk down the hall, and put sheets on my bed, and then I can lie in a horizontal position for as long as I like.

Now there is a happy thought. Thank you everyone for the well-wishes, now I think I'm going to sit here and think about nothing. Toodle-oo.

*this did not prevent me from singing Irish ditties as loud as I could the entire way.

So. Close.

2007-06-14T20:56:00.000-07:00

Currently very tired and disgustingly sweaty. I hate not having centralized air, the house gets so stale. Especially when the temperature hikes above 75F. Urg.

Much progress was made today. My bedroom is in a dozen large boxes. The bathroom is in several large boxes. The kitchen is... well, I'm working on it. As for everyone else's progress, I have no idea. The fact that Emm spent the day playing WoW (*snark*), or Mum was caught watching Law & Order several times, doesn't bode well for their progress.

But! Like it or not, we are moving tomorrow. The U-Haul van parked outside proves that:

Dad even hired a couple of handy men he knows to come around in the morning and help us load the van. I have a feeling that Mum and Emm will spend tomorrow morning frantically packing. I might just do the same, because the kitchen is proving a lot, well, bigger than I thought. Of course, it would have been nice if I hadn't had to move a couple dozen of Mum's boxes to get to packing up the bathroom and kitchen.

*sigh*

What else have I been doing when I can't pack another box full of heaven-knows-what? You guessed it, knitting. These, specifically:

5.5" in 2 days. Think I'm stressed much? One day, I might just devote a blog post to some of my stress-knitting stories.

Otherwise, not much else to report. I packed up the stash and all my other WIPs this afternoon. Along with the camera cable, which I had to dig out of a taped-up box in order to post tonight (my precognition abilities are astounding).

Tomorrow, we get to find out if it is possible for me to knit in a moving car* with a full fish tank in my lap. And, as an encore (if I don't accidentally kill Lapis), I'll turn the heels on both socks. Sounds a bit like a circus act, doesn't it?

"Ladies and Gentlemen, prepare to gasp in wonder at the Amazing Knitting Contortionist, Fyberduck!"

Wish me luck. I'm gonna need it...

*Let's not forget that Mum will be driving said car - the woman whose license was recently suspended for two speeding violations.

painfully slow progress

2007-06-13T23:21:00.001-07:00

To momentarily distract myself, you, and the Powers That Be, I present two recent photos my sister sent me of baby T and little D:

(are you plotzing yet?)

Let it not be said that I am competitive or anything, but clearly my niece is The Cutest Niece there is, Franklin. Yes, yours is adorable, but mine wins the Supernaturally Cute Prize:

Clearly.

Moving on.

My sister also mentioned that baby T is talking (well, four words) and working on standing. I'm kinda at a loss, because I clearly remember this time last year I was working on the minty baby set and furiously trying to figure out how best to make a cradle blankie. When they say time flies, they certainly aren't joking.

Other news? We finally got a truck for Friday. Ugh. We (Dad and I) spent over an hour in the U-Haul office yesterday trying to rent a truck. Talk about unmitigated hell. No A/C and a line that went off onto the horizon. I finally escaped the press to sit elsewhere and knit.

After that was a doctor's appointment that pronounced me in the clear (UTI gone, yay), craft supply shopping, and the dreaded Summer Clothing Shopping Expedition. Worst of all, it was done with my father. Men and shopping are like oil and water. Oy.

In the end, out of sheer desperation, I bought 3 pairs of Wrangler's Men's cargo shorts (yes, Men's), because:

they were not jeans that resembled underwear in both cut and fit
nor were they 'capris' that claimed to hit me just below my knees - for the record, said 'capris' hit my ankles
they do not contain a single mircon of spandex nor are they adorned with tags screaming 'STRETCH' (plastic-infused pants, just what I want for summer!)
they came in my size - for some reason all the women's shorts in my size (that were all-cotton, anyway) were sold out
and, ha, they actually fit me though the hips - now there's a strange concept, isn't it, girls?

Hmph. I now look like should be on a safari or hiking in the Sierra's, but I'll take what I can get.

And, lastly, also in relation to the fit of the shorts - I've lost weight. Not much, but again, I'll take what I can get. To be perfectly honest, while I've been trying to eat healthier food and exercise more, I keep forgetting to get on a scale to check my (slow) progress. So, as of today, I have another 3 lbs to add to the total lost tally. Let joy be unbounded.

I need to get some sleep now, we're packing up the last of the 'main' rooms tomorrow - the kitchen and bathrooms, as well as my own remaining items that aren't boxed up. We're so close to being done with this move.

Now there's a cheering thought - after Friday, no more packing. Just unpacking. And with that happy thought, I think I will retire.

socks for ME

2007-06-12T00:12:00.000-07:00

Most of the time I'm a process knitter - I knit for the simple pleasure of knitting. But every so often I want something for myself. The Shibui socks were a good example of that. I immediately (and selfishly) wanted the yarn for me, and now there is no way in hell I'm parting with my new Jaywalkers:

In fact, I'm currently debating whether or not I need to take them off to go to bed...

What do you think?

Project Specs:

Yarn: Knit/Purl's Shibui Sock in "Spectrum"
Needles: 2 22" Addi Turbos, 2.5 mm/ US 1
Gauge: 8 sts/ inch in stockinette
Size: 8" foot circumference
Pattern: Magknits' Jaywalker by Grumperina
Recipient: ME!
Date started: May 29, 2007
Date finished: June 11, 2007

I finished them this morning, and showed them off to everyone who'd stand still long enough. Dad was the most appreciative of the bunch, strangely enough. I wore them to Madame de Farge's, but the place was nearly deserted. Jodie was there with a couple others, but we definitely had the place to ourselves.

The four of us (Jodie, Emmos, St M and I) plotted for this year's Sheep-to-Shawl, but the info's Top Secret, sorry. I think. I dunno, I certainly don't feel in charge. I hope St M or Emmos knows what they're doing...

Ahwell. It's all for fun anyway.

In other news, knitting news again, I decided not to let my Addi's languish and immediately cast on another pair of socks. Well, actually, first I cast on Pomatomus with my Lorna's Laces "Seaside" (Shepherd Sock yarn):

But, 2" in, it looked horrible. Bad. Really, really bad. "Ne'er the twain ~~shall~~ should meet" bad. So, *sigh*, I ripped. And cast on another two socks (different pattern) to make my life easier. I picked an old Shetland lace motif from Barbara Walker's "A Treasury Of Knitting Patterns" and went with it. Progress pix to follow...

Major packing tomorrow, wish me luck, I'm gonna need it.

The Night of Handknit Socks

2007-06-10T22:23:00.000-07:00

Well... 3 pair*. But that makes for a less dramatic title, doesn't it?

Tonight was my last "Guild" meeting. Not that it's been a guild for a long time (give or take a year), but we keep calling our weekly get-together such out of habit. Because I'm about to leave town, I had a bag full of things to give to Emmos (posters for her new house, tapestry bobbins for her next weaving classes, etc - and a pair of handknit socks). The socks, alas, no longer fit me after one of my relatives managed to shrink them in the wash. They were always a bit tight (gauge? what gauge?), but now they're simply a size too small.

Luckily, Emmos is a shoe-size smaller than I, so the socks fit her:

Emmos, seemingly very excited, immediately put the socks on (with her sandal - a true Eugenian to the bone) and wore them home. Before that, however, one of us noticed that St M was wearing her latest FO's - the tulip lace socks from Lace Style. And, as I tried on my Jaywalkers (frustrated with trying to measure their length the conventional way), St M insisted we get a picture of our handknit sock glory:

Okay, she may not have said the word "glory". In any case, the Jaywalkers are nearly done (can you tell?). At this very moment I'm on the last toe decrease. I just need to finish them up tonight so I can figure out my next sock project for Madame deFarge's tomorrow. I hear the siren call of two skeins of Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock in 'Seaside' calling my name.

Suggestions? I was thinking Hedera...

*2.9, in all honesty.

infamous?

2007-06-09T00:08:00.000-07:00

For all that my family is a very volatile creature (we fought like wildcats two nights ago), we ARE a family. This is something the occasional outsider doesn't understand. I'm not sure whether I envy or pity these people, but that's another matter. So, to some, it may come as a surprise what happened today (especially when one takes into account the huge fight we all got into recently).

This afternoon, as I was boxing yet more stuff up, Mum & Dad ambled into the room to check on my progress, and plan for the rest of the afternoon. When they asked what I'd rather do today (more boxes or gardening), I joking admitted that I really wanted to go to the Harlot's signing at Powell's. There was a pause.

"That's today? I thought it was tomorrow."

"No," sigh, "it's tonight."

"Well..." And then, somehow, Mum & Dad came up with a plot. We'd pack up the car to the brim with boxes, move them into the Portland house and then take me over to the signing - thus, the afternoon wouldn't be wasted, and I'd get my book signed (I have all the Harlot's books autographed now, yay).

So, at around 4 pm, the Jaywalkers were getting carsick outside Albany:

They asked me to pleaseplease put them back in their bag, please. I did. We arrived in Portland a bit late, cuz there was a HUGE backup (read: standstill) outside of Canby. Dad and I, seeing the terrible sight of several miles of Interstate clogged, veered off of said Interstate on the nearest exit.

Upon grabbing the giant Portland Metropolitan area map, a haphazard route was planned along several country roads, two highways, and through the middle of Canby itself. Dad was impressed with how pretty the countryside was (wine country), and the ride was much smoother than I-5, so it was definitely worth the extra half hour or so.

Eventually we arrived at the house and proceeded to move boxes with a speed rarely seen in humans. We had T-minus 45 minutes to get supper and get to Powell's before the Harlot appeared (7:30 pm). We grabbed the bestest Pho ever (yumyum), dashed out of the restaurant (we paid, don't worry), and drove like maniacs to the Burnside Bridge. Dad dropped me off outside of Powell's (running late, ack!) and I rushed in, acting very Italian, and cut to the front of the Information desk.

"Harlot signing," I panted. The woman looked at me with pity.

"It's in the Pearl Room, on the 3rd Floor. But," she paused and considered me, my size, and my ability to act like a sardine, "the room's already overfull and the manager's talking about closing off the room. I'd hurry if I were you," she called to me, and the 3 other knitters who had slipped in behind me, as a mass of us rushed off towards the stairs. After getting lost in the Purple Room (I don't recommend this) and, err, a slight stampede (we warned the man, I swear), the four of us made it to the Pearl Room.

And, indeed, the event was standing room only. For most of the Harlot's talk I couldn't even see her, but instead listened and watched the knitters around me. Handspun, handknit garments were everywhere, and I enjoyed inspecting them. Finally, towards the end of the Harlot's talk, the crowd had thinned a bit, and I shimmied past a couple of snickering Knitters to snap this very blurry shot:

Seriously. I'm amazed we all fit onto the 3rd floor, in the end (many a knitter was seen perched on the stairs to the 4th floor, or in the stacks). Then, when the talk was over and the signing was to begin, I took the Powell's representative very very seriously and lined up, quickly, where he told us to. Good thing I did, too, since the line got lengthy fast; and, wow, I doubt even Dad would have sat that long for me to get my book signed. But, luckily, I only stood in line for maybe 15 minutes. Which were spent amicably chatting with a very interesting woman and her daughter, both knitters, and who promised me an In with Blue Moon. Oh... my.

Great chat. I also was greeted by one of the girls from Knit/Purl, who asked if she could come up with me (she identified the Jaywalkers instantly). In exchange for a photograph, I agreed. I think the Harlot passed on some of her mojo to the Jaywalkers for me and I got to hold The Sock:

(can you totally tell I spent the afternoon getting sweaty and dirty
...and didn't get to shower or brush my hair before this photo was taken?)
(OY)

After the photo was taken, an offer for drinks was given, and pleasantries exchanged, I handed the Harlot my book, containing my sticky-note the Powell's person wrote out for me.

"You're Fyberduck?!" I looked around, confused. Were there Wanted posters up? Was she remembering that (slight) fiasco involving the Knitting Olympics group blog I organized?

"Ye-es."

"Well, if this isn't like being approached by Bruce Wayne and being asked to write an autograph for Batman!" I laughed nervously, said thank you, was photographed again with The Sock, then made polite talk I really don't remember now and made my escape (sans Dark Knight cape, alas).

I found Dad standing by the "Knitting Is Knotty" display (insert snicker here) and replied to his 'how did it go?' with, "Wow, I guess I'm infamous."

After turning down an offer from a couple of the girls from Knit/Purl (they were having a get-together nearby), evading some sailors on shore-leave, hunting down ice cream, and singing off-key for two hours, we finally arrived home.

What a strange day.

tired and cranky

2007-06-07T01:18:00.000-07:00

Title says it all. Family crazy. Move hectic. Want to burn house down (after strategic evacuation of stash). Sold spinning wheel (weep not for me, or Lennie) to St M this morning. Mouth still hurts, and skin still itches from hives. Haven't knit on this all day:

Have to send payment tomorrow for Journey Wheel. Much packing to do. Eeek. Going to bed now.

itchy

2007-06-04T01:48:00.000-07:00

Started noticing hives and a rash three hours ago. Have discontinued antibiotic, taken multiple Benadryl tablets, slathered my body with Aveeno lotion, and tried to stop scratching my itchy itchy skin.

Here's my Jaywalkers as of noonish today:

A little more progress has been made since then. But, mostly I've been working on Vivaldi and the nameless cotlin tank top.

Now, I am finally going to go to sleep (I pray, anyway).

they say

2007-06-03T00:34:00.000-07:00

'They' say, apparently, that the worst day after a surgery is usually the third. It's usually on the third day the body realises what's been done to it, and reacts. Well, in my case, 'they' were right. Yesterday was unmitigated hell. My face was round as a basketball (nearly the same size, too) and my jaw hurt. I think I used half of the narcotics I was prescribed, just yesterday. Hence the lack of post.

Yes, I used ice religiously for the first two days. I also used heat religiously yesterday and today. 20 minutes on, 20 minutes off. For the first two days my ears were numb half of the day, from all the ice. Yesterday and today, I got to sweat buckets. I also got to change shirts three times. Fun.

Today wasn't as bad, by comparison. I woke up in pain, took my horrible antibiotic and too much ibuprofen on no food (don't chew me out, I've already done it, Mum's already done it, it's been done) and went back to a quasi-sleep. At noon, feeling horrible from lack of nutrition, I made myself get up and eat so I could swallow even more antibiotics and pain killers.

After 13 episodes of Star Trek: Enterprise (no, seriously, I wish I were kidding), 2 hours of OPB, more ice cream than I ever wanted to see again and several episodes of Futurama, I'm almost ready to try and sleep again (yes, I'm tired, it's just so hard to lay down).

To put off that difficulty for another few minutes, I'll relay my knitting progress. I'm past the heels and onto the gussets of the Jaywalkers. I'm also onto the second skein of the back of my cotlin project. I really like working with the cotlin. It's pretty soft and has a lovely drape. My only complaint is the frequent (but not overwhelming) pieces of tow flax in the yarn, which I yank out.

Considering the amount of veggie matter I've found in expensive yarns (Noro, Karaoke and Silky Wool, to name a few), finding coarse bits of actual fiber isn't too big a complaint. Especially when one compares the prices.

Otherwise? Very little to relate. Still swollen (not as bad as it could be, I admit this). Still cranky. But at least there's noticeable progress.

chipmump cheeks

2007-05-31T15:54:00.001-07:00

I present, for your amusement and my own humility, a picture of my chipmump cheeks (a chipmunk with mumps)...

Wow, could I look any more ridiculous?

Good news? I am finally able to eat hot/ real foods again. I just managed some mini mozzarella balls (bless Mum and her funky grocery lists). Mum's even promised me lentil soup... I never thought I'd say it, but at the moment I never, ever, want to see (much less eat) ice cream again.

Other, knitting, news. 4 rows on the pair of Jaywalkers done. I've also swatched for the official wraplan pattern. And drawn up schematics (much appreciation for that term of mechanical drawing in high school). Since Emmos has offered to test the pattern for me, I'm waiting for her response to get to pattern writing.

The blog's sidebars have been updated (long overdue). I got rid of the WIP list, because (let's be honest) I'm bad at updating it and tons of smaller projects never made their way onto it. And, since the single FO list was becoming unmanageable, I went to the yearly FO lists that are so (understandably) popular across the blogosphere..

And, I think I'm going to sit and watch Dad and Emm roll up the carpets now (the area rugs are going up North tomorrow, I think). I'm a bit nauseous from the antibiotics and lovely opiates, and the puter isn't making it better.

But, I think that's everything.

Oh, and I LOVE this Shibui bag. Seriously. It deserves a post of it's own.

recuperating

2007-05-30T23:49:00.000-07:00

I look like a chipmunk with mumps, but all is well. Thank you, everyone, for your well wishes and kind words. I really, really wish I could just eat solid food, right now.

Otherwise? Not too bad. Even better news... actually, I have a lot. First, I received two images from my sister of baby T in her new sweater, the prototype wraplan - making it an official FO:

I'm definitely going to have to change the pattern - the button band was completely wonky and the edge kept curling (despite ribbing), but it looks cuter than a bug's ear. Project specs:

The pattern: my own
Knitting start date: I have no idea. December-ish, 2006?
Finish date: March 25, 2007
The yarn: Jo-Ann's Bellezza "Smania" (which, incidentally, I do NOT recommend)
The needles: US 5's Denise needles
The size: 12 month old, 24" (ish)
Knitting techniques: continental, flat body, DPN sleeves, intarsia for baseball-sleeves.

And the other good news? Sheila, kind soul at Journey Wheel, contacted me to let me know that one of their customers is selling her DT Journey Wheel (w/ case and extra bobbins) for much, much less that I'm scheduled to pay for the new one. She offered to have Jonathan look it over and fix it up for me, before sending it over - IF I want it.

Of course I want it! Hopefully, I'll actually get it. How cool is that? I love these people, they're very friendly and trying so hard to help me (and all their customers) out.

And that is all. Now we're set to go and watch a movie, while my face swells even more. I should get a picture of this. Give everyone over the nets a laugh.

ignore it, and it'll go away

2007-05-29T16:14:00.000-07:00

Well. It's been my tactic for the past two weeks. Until this afternoon, when the Oral Surgeon's office called to confirm my surgery check-in tomorrow at 2:20 pm. "And, please remember not to eat or drink anything for 6 before the surgery."

Bloody hell. Has it been 2 weeks already?

Yes, yes, it has. Blech. I am not looking forward to this. Up until now, I've been the only member of my immediate family who hasn't had any form of surgery. Tomorrow will nix that claim.

Mum & Dad accused me (teasingly) of trying to get out of the surgery by getting sick. On Saturday morning I woke up with a sore throat, drip, and just overall awful feeling. It lasted for a couple of days - several fewer than the rest of the family. But, I attribute this to the fact that I immediately started taking DayQuil and NyQuil (thus getting a full night's sleep) and didn't put off treatment, in general. Lots and lots of garlic.

Anyway. Knitting. I cast on a pair of Jaywalkers, using The Yarn:

And I am really, really, really liking them. Wow. It's so much fun to knit with this yarn! It's so soft and sqooshy and the colours are amazing and vibrant. I definitely recommend it. I want more so badly right now. But, this pair has gotten me back into socks - so I'm already planning what I want to make with my other sock yarns. My next pair will be Hedera, I think, using two of my Lorna's...

Uh oh, Mum needs help with her iPod...

Wish me luck tomorrow! I'm gonna need it.

spoiled by shibui

2007-05-25T21:02:00.000-07:00

I recently saw a t-shirt that read, "Spoiled Rotten." I nearly bought it, because I am. I admit it. I love, and deeply appreciate, the fact that I've rarely wanted for anything. And, in my defense, I am not remotely like Paris Hilton. I want to go into the Peace Corps to give back to the global community.

That said, I have a feeling that knitters might just start planning ways to raid my house tonight. I went to Portland with Mum & Dad today, to help them close the lease on the house we're renting for the next year. They asked me to come along, look over the paperwork (did I mention I aced AP Law?), take pictures of the rental, and just help out in general. So, on 5 hours of sleep (waaay too much caffeine yesterday evening), I got up this morning and requested that we make a stop at two shops in Portland - L'Occitane, because I'm out of facial scrub, and Knit/Purl, to ask about local stitch'n'bitch groups.

Honest to goodness, I did NOT plan on shopping. I was good, my intentions were honorable. We made great time and arrived at the rental an hour early (even after we stopped for Pho). After an hour of paperwork, endless signatures and initials, we got the keys and went to look the place over again:

It's VERY cute, and a little under 1/2 the size of our present house (heaven help us). I took tons of pictures of every room, nook, and cranny (just in case). After exploring the neighborhood, we then went onto the fun portion of the afternoon. Dad got to visit his new favourite haberdashery (can you believe I actually get to write that word in a blog post?), while Mum and I played in their Ladies' section (wow, I have never wanted fancy hats so much in my life).

I then asked, because we were 6 blocks away, to hit Knit/Purl. This was agreed to. First, and I came up with this one, we stopped by Josephine's. If you are even remotely fond of fabric, you MUST stop at this store. There are no words to describe the exquisiteness of their wares.

Yet, somehow, Mum and I managed not to buy anything there (a near thing, too, since they had a line of Italian summer cottons out) and walked out with nary a sigh.

Next door is Knit/Purl (and next to them is a needlepoint shop...). Knit/Purl is what I want to grow up and own. It's definitely a Big Kids knitting store. Mum & Dad and I looked around, making conversation about local knitting groups. I was strongly encouraged to come by on Thursday nights, when they have their knitting night. Tempting.

The sock wall was my doom in the end. But, technically (this truly is a hairfine line I'm barely not crossing), I didn't break the Yarn Diet. Seriously. Mum & Dad bought the yarn as a gift. Sooo... it doesn't count, right?

I have a feeling I'm not going to win that argument. Moving on. As I was looking at their patterns (I really love the Shibui line), Dad called me away from the shelves. Sounding frighteningly reminiscent of Mephistopheles, he asked me slyly, "Have you seen this?"

Oh. Dear.

Somehow, 5 minutes later, with a "I hope we start seeing you on Thursday nights!" ringing in my ears, Mum & Dad and I were standing on the street... and I was clutching my new Tote and the forbidden yarn, slightly puzzled over my new acquisitions.

This just skyrockets my Spoiled status through the roof, doesn't it?

But, to keep my karma in the positives, I'm working on a bunch of cute things not for me. On the way home I gleefully finished a bootie for someone's baby (who's already born, darnit, the whole baby-waiting-for-the-knitting-to-be-done is a lie). Since the parent sometimes reads this blog, I'm not going to show the bootie finished. But, here's the front:

and side:

I made the pattern up while we waited for Pirates of the Caribbean to start last night. It's a sole-up pattern that I'm not even sure how my demented mind invented. But, everyone admits it's cute. The pattern needs some polishing, but I like it enough to keep trying. Yay for more babies!

I cast on the second bootie, but got dreadfully carsick after awhile, and ended up sitting (slightly bored) for a couple of hours not getting anything done. Blast. This is why I like trains. I never get sick when I knit on them. Or planes. Or boats.

Blarg.

I think I'm going to try to knit the second bootie tonight. I'm off to do that and find a Lo Jack for my new knitting tote.

Avast! Spoilers (little, itsy, bitsy ones)

2007-05-25T00:10:00.000-07:00

Just got back from Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End.

WHOA. It was amazing. I read a bad review of it and was extremely anxious going in, but the ponce who dared to insult it's film-making genius needs to be locked in the brig, if you ask me.

LOVED the (Greek) mythology. LOVED Sparrow this time around (every time, if I'm completely honest). LOVED Elizabeth this time (don't always). LOVED Chow Yun-Phat. LOVED Kieth Richards as Jack's father. LOVED, LOVED, LOVED THE ENTIRE FILM.

DISLIKES? None, really. The beginning was painfully honest and historically accurate for the most part *grimace* (it may not be appropriate for some children, beware the PG-13 rating!!). The scenes in Singapore are confusing at first, but make sense over time. The end was bittersweet (ooh, there's your spoiler). But, all in all, I really loved the entire thing. The editing was tight, and everything was explained eventually.

Oh. Be sure to stay past the credits. There's some gooey sweetness.

How did we (St M, Mum, Emm, and I) manage to see it a day early? Mum saw an advertisement for a, well I guess, sneak(?) preview. Because there were only, like, 2 commercials for said sneak(?) preview last night the show wasn't sold out! There were actually seats empty.

Crazy, huh?

And of course I wore the tricorn. I finished sewing the trim on about 5 minutes before we left to pick up St M (who was in costume). I got, before we set sail, Emm to model the FO for a shot:

I think I will change the front 'horn' or 'point', now that I think about it.

But, that's done. I've already started another Top Secret knitting project, gotten beads for the Sheep-to-Shawl competition, and yarn arrived in the mail today (I'm in the legal clear, I ran out of yarn previously in the stash! ... sorta).

Now, I really ought to go to sleep, so I can get up early in the morning - we're heading to Portland to, er, 'close' on the lease to the house we're going to be renting for the next year...

on: that was harder than I thought

2007-05-23T22:05:00.000-07:00

The felting part was easy. I am lazy and shouldn't be left to scientifically DO anything. I just threw the tricorn in the wash for a cycle, forgot about it, threw it in the dryer, and then declared it done after about 30 minutes of rolling around in hot air.

It's a wonder I even made it past the Scientific Method, isn't it?

Anyway. It came out perfectly felted. The next part, the really tricky step, was shaping the bloody thing. Getting the three horns (or at least two of them) even is something the ancient Greek geometricians would have cringed at. But, finally, after nearly an hour of pinning, unpinning, repinning and the first 15 minutes of Pirates of the Caribbean: Curse of the Black Pearl, Mum declared this 'good':

(yes, the front horn is wonky, this is due to the T-pin holding it in place)

I decided to go with the a slightly earlier time period than POTC - late Baroque/ very early Rococo. So, the front horn is a bit longer and pointer than the back two. The top curves are gently scooped inward, and the back third is a little bit lower than the front two. I still don't have a plume (BLAST! I forgot that!), and haven't sewn on the trim I bought for it - aubergine ribbon and gold braid. I plan on having it done for the show tomorrow night, even if I go in jeans.

The hat WILL be done. Hopefully it'll be blocked (or semi-blocked tomorrow), so I won't have to do too much tacking with a needle and thread.

I have some small knitting news. I finished ONE of my Top Secret projects, right before I had to leave for Homework Club. Which went well, all things considered, since there were 5 kids and just Emmos and me between them. I managed to cover Spanish, Health, and Fractions pretty evenly, I hope.

And, that's about all. I need to find my bodice and work some repairs on it. It's not even remotely Baroque or Rococo - try early Renaissance. But I doubt anyone will notice.

Maybe I will just wear the hat and some jeans...

that was fast

2007-05-23T00:59:00.001-07:00

At 12:45 am, I FINISHED weaving in the ends on my soon-to-be Tricorn hat, whilst Mum and I watched Pirates Of The Caribbean: Curse Of The Black Pearl (for the 467th time). As the credits scrolled, I went upstairs and snapped a picture:

I'm going to felt it later today (gawd, it's actually after midnight).

Other news? Mum and Dad are sick with some respiratory infection (joy be unbounded), and Dad's been prescribed FOUR different medications - coinciding, funnily enough, with the fact that he's had pneumonia FOUR times in his life. I made him go to the doctor yesterday (I am such a good daughter, I know) because he nearly fainted from a coughing fit. It turns out he had been sleeping in a recliner for several nights prior, because he couldn't breathe if he laid down.

I just sort of stared at him when he admitted this. ONE night like that would have sent me to the doctor. The man clearly doesn't learn as quickly as he should.

Ohwell.

More news? Erm. Not much. I'm working on knitting some Secret Items. Top Secret.

And, uh, that's all I can remember at 1 am.

speed knitting

2007-05-22T17:21:00.000-07:00

At 4:00 pm (PST) today, I cast on the Knit Like A Pirate Tricorn Hat. I had remembered this morning (3 days before POTC 3 comes out) that I had sworn last time (POTC 2) that I would have one knit up in time for the premiere. I hang out with geeks (hey, I AM one) and we like to dress up whenever you give us an excuse.

At 5:25 pm, I am nearly done with the brim (on Row 9).

Can I get this knit by the weekend?

Of course, Dad, I told him as I plopped the yarn (Lion Brand Lion Wool, 'ebony') on a counter at the store in question.

I guess we'll see. Back to the knitting... Better update forthcoming. (clearly I am not dead and my house hasn't burnt down - I'm just a bad blogger right now)

really, really tired.

2007-05-20T00:16:00.000-07:00

Exhausted. Which is stupid (I know this), because TheBon's wedding shower wasn't too difficult to pull off (all in all, I think we did well). But I am. Tired, I mean. So, in lieu of posting, I present you with the What Type of Yarn Are You? Quiz:

What kind of yarn are you?

You are Mohair. You are a warm and fuzzy type who works well with others, doing your share without being too weighty. You can be stubborn and absolutely refuse to change your position once it is set, but that's okay since you are good at covering up your mistakes.
Take this quiz!

Quizilla | Join | Make A Quiz | More Quizzes | Grab Code

I find it amusing that I am allergic to my result...

tag, I'm it

2007-05-15T23:18:00.000-07:00

Lacking any narrative content tonight, I (thankfully) turn to the meme Tamara tagged me with.

The rules:
1. Each player starts with 8 random facts/habits about themselves.
2. People who are tagged write a blog post about their own 8 random things and post these rules.
3. At the end of your blog you need to tag 8 people and post their names.
4. Don’t forget to leave them a comment and tell them they’re tagged, and to read your blog.

Ooh. This will be fun, if only because I'm ~~nosy~~ curious...

8 Random Facts/ Habits:

I am equally excited and terrified at the prospect of being a Peace Corps volunteer.
My first handspun yarn was so thick and over-twisted it couldn't fit through the orifice. My teacher had to finally unspin it to force it through.
I love the colour orange in nature.
Opiates make me hallucinate. And not in a good way.
After being so definitively goal- and career-oriented in my studies, I actually have NO IDEA what I want to do now.
I love Blood Orange juice.
I believe in reincarnation, even though I am (in some ways) devoutly Jewish. (In other ways, I am a complete heretic, but we already knew that.)
If I could cast ONE magical spell, I would choose to be able to speak/ read any language fluently at any time.

Aaaand, the eight bloggers I'm tagging are... St M, Crimson, Laural, Jodie, TheBon, Penny, Carol, and Stephieface.

Other news? The Charity Blanket has been sent off, and my part of the job is done. We might have a Sheep-to-Shawl team, if the organizer at the Black Sheep Gathering will allow us to join a month after the deadline (oops?). If we get approved, I'll likely be the weaver. Cross your fingers for us.

good news, bad news

2007-05-15T00:51:00.000-07:00

While I still haven't heard from the Peace Corps on anything like my placement (sigh) or the level of my medical clearance ('nother sigh), I DO have other good Peace Corps related news. One, I received a package from the Corps today containing a book (for me) and two booklets (for my family) on what to expect during my service.

Two, well, this is gonna take longer to explain. At the Peace Corps Nominee Potluck, the subject of my spinning wheel came up. I wanted to know if it'd be possible for me to take it with me. The RPCV/ former staffer (returned Peace Corps volunteer/ she worked at the head office in D.C. after her tour) told me that she'd never heard of such a thing, but that some volunteers had taken over things like musical instruments or furniture. Dad then piped up and said, "why don't we just get you one of those spinning wheels in a box?"

I stared at him (so did everyone else, out of confusion) and finally said, "They're very expensive, Dad."

"Well, if you're going into the Peace Corps for 2 - 3 years, I think we can swing it somehow." (truth is, I think Dad wants me to get one of these just because they're so darn cool)

Oh. I filed this welcome nugget away for later investigation. On Saturday night I visited the Journey Wheel website and, after getting very excited over the possibility of taking one to Africa with me, I noticed this:

Journey Wheels: Our Fall 2007 group is now full.
The next open spot is in Winter 2008;
5 available.
Please specify Single or Double Treadle.

cried, "no!" and immediately emailed Sheila. She told me that the note was indeed true, but because of my unique situation we might work something out. After exchanging emails for a couple of days, I received the happiest news there was. Not only was there a Fall spot open due to a recent cancellation, but a spinner in the Summer group had given me her spot in favor of the Fall one. In light of this kindness, I could have a Journey wheel by mid-July.

Fiber artists are truly some of the most generous people in the world.

This news was more than enough to make me ecstatic for the rest of the day. I immediately realised that, while my parents are very generous, there was no way they could afford the total price. So, to make this possible, I'm selling my Lendrum. It's difficult to come to terms with, but it needs to be done. And, really, my parents shouldn't have to store Lennie (and all the accoutrement I've collected for him) for the next 2- 3 years.

I love my Lendrum (we all know this), but I have to be reasonable. The Journey wheel is the best idea there is (thank you, Dad) and I'll definitely be able to use it wherever I'm placed. There's the 'bad' news. Well, not really bad. Just slightly sad. But, I'm relieved in the fact that St M says she can meet my asking price, so at least I know that Lennie will be going to a good home.

St M says I should take this all as a positive sign. Mum and Dad agree. There's something, I guess.

In other news, St M and I spent the afternoon and evening together. At dinner, we noticed the COOLEST chair on the face of the PLANET:

Gandhi spinning on his charkha! How unbelievably spiffy is that?

It must be admitted that I tactically considered what it would have taken to sneak it out. After deciding that not even St M could create that great a distraction, the plan was dropped. But we got dinner anyway. After dinner was Monday Night Knitting. And who did we sit with? Jodie, the organizer of the Charity Blanket Swap. I even got her and C to pose with the blanket WIP:

Which ALSO means that I have fulfilled my obligation to photograph the blanket in my hometown. Coolies. I'm sending it out tomorrow. Watch out, Penny! It's coming for you next ^_^

And, wow, my inbox is overflowing. Someone help me, please.

a full day

2007-05-12T21:17:00.000-07:00

“Friendship marks a life even more deeply than love. Love risks degenerating into obsession, friendship is never anything but sharing.”
Elie Wiesel

Emmos (who needs to update her blog! *hint hint*) and I spent most of the day together. We met at the EPL at noon and went on to find varnish. What does varnish have to do with the EPL?

Absolutely nothing. But the EPL is right next to the Eugene Bus Station, ah ha, where my bus route ends.

We needed varnish for the new furniture Emmos got so she'd actually have furniture next weekend for TheBon's bridal shower. Emmos ended up buying kits* from an Oregon company to finish and assemble a dining set (4 chairs and a table). And since Emmos works for a chemical company, they have a ventilation room specifically for use in painting. Cool, huh?

So, after we had the varnish (and a new brush) in hand we got to work. Here's Emmos with the pieces of wood laid out; which she'd spent most of the morning sanding and varnishing, incidentally:

(the scary brown wall-grille is actually a giant vent)

And just as we were really getting into the swing of things, one of Emmos' co-workers showed up to coat a Mother's Day present. I asked him to take a picture of us, just because, and here you can see us:

(me wearing an enormous lab coat to protect my clothes)
(and, wow, I need a haircut!)

After that, well, our day becomes more secretive. We went shopping for many things, gifts and the like. Emmos gave me a Maidenhair Fern, with it's own little pink pot, as a "thank you" for helping her with the dirty-work (apparently I sand wood like a fiend). Here it is, keeping Lapis company and showing off the overflowing state of my desk:

Emmos and I are plotting to go back to the Indoor Garden store to, ahem, "get a plant for her office." The fact that I have the hots for one of the clerks has nothing to do with it. Though, I was glad to have met with him Emmos around - we had a debate earlier on the worthiness of American men, and he won my argument for me. Kudos to nice guys.

Anyway. Right. Shopping. I got stuff I've been wanting - like a doggy "waste bag dispenser" to take on walks with Charlie (yes, I am such a spoiled American). But, to make up for the fact that I am, in fact, buying dog poop bags I got the biodegradable ones. Ha! I turned down the cooler dispenser with the "larger" bags, so neider.

That's my story and I'm sticking to it.

I also found the last of my little things for Penny. I'm very excited and can't wait to send the blanket off on Monday. I'll walk with Charlie to the post office, I think, since Mum and Dad aren't due back from Portland until that evening.

And that's about everything. I'm looking forward to knitting on my spencer-bolero-thing for a bit...

---
*because there is a sudden hardwood chair shortage in the PNW, it seems.

ooops

2007-05-11T00:12:00.000-07:00

I just realised (as I sat here plotting) that I've already, um, broken my agreement with Penny on the swap conditions. Oops? Too late now... And there's no way I'm returning what I got, I'll never hear the end of it from several of the parties concerned, not after the scene Charlie caused at the shop today, and I can't keep it because that would mumble mumble mumble... nevermind.

Anyway. Ohwell. I honestly forgot. But, well, oops.

Ah. Otherwise, today went well. My parents got the news they wanted - they don't have to pay to have my wisdom teeth extracted until after I'm invited to the Peace Corps program (and 30 days before I ship off). Much rejoicing was to be found throughout the house. I spent a half hour on the phone with my recruiter covering every possible question Dad could think of, but now we're good. And N's sending down some information for my parents (a book and a DVD) so they can know what they're to look forward to. Woohoo. Mum's nearly ecstatic, since the country we think I might possibly be nominated for is, well, cool. She wants to visit me while I'm there.

Dad hasn't disagreed, so there we are. I think they just want an excuse to go to Africa.

Other news? Three movie reviews and a lot of frogging.

Happily Never After. Blah. Wasn't impressed. St M and I had tons of fun making fun of it, though. The animation was a bit wonky and stiff, the storyline predictable, and the attempts at humor failed. All in all it was lackluster. Except for Sigourney Weaver's evil/ maniacal laughter. She actually did quite well at that.

Music & Lyrics. St M and I watched this after the failed fairy tale. This one was funny, though I didn't like Barrymore's character too much. Grant was very droll (of course), but the whole thing was formulaic. Don't get me wrong, we enjoyed it (and making fun of parts of it) but it definitely wasn't a meaningful film. All told, it was funny and fluffy. The opening sequence did make me laugh hysterically.

The Painted Veil. I watched this as I tacked up Mum's hemline, after we drove St M home. I had seen a preview for it and desperately wanted to see it. Period films always fascinate me (especially when set during the '2o's) and I love Naomi Watts and Edward Norton. The film was beautifully filmed, cast and costumed (I have major clothing lust right now). But, since it was based on the book by Somerset Maugham, none of us expected a happy ending. At best it could be considered bittersweet. I enjoyed it immensely and will definitely watch it again, but it's not a pick-me-up movie by any standard.

As for knitting, I got a swatch done today and the math for that summer bolero done. I'll be casting it on shortly. Hopefully it'll be a quick project, so I can get back to work on other things.

Mum and Dad leave for Portland tomorrow, to look at rentals. I'm going to catch up on my sleep this weekend, I think. And knit. And plan for TheBon's bridal shower.

I think, therefore I blog?

2007-05-10T01:27:00.000-07:00

It certainly ain't the other way 'round, I'm sure we can all agree.

Stephieface did me the great honor of nominating/ tagging me for a Thinking Blogger Award. She also saved me from having to take a picture of something for tonight's post, because there's a button and everything involved:

They seem to be circling around the knitting blogsphere, which is fantastic if only because we're such a communicative and appreciative group. And it's also a great chance for us to find new blogs that inspire others. So, to keep this going, I need to nominate 5 blogs that get me thinking. There are so many, too many, but my 5 (which haven't been mentioned that I know of) are:

Spincerely Yours. I love Tamara's writing style. I also love the fact that she refers to her girls as her 'agents'. Lately, she's gotten me thinking more and more about the Gardasil controversy and it's possible effects on our children and society. She also knits and spins beautiful things.
Penguin Girl. I love Penny. She keeps me feeling Jewish and actually gets me thinking about every week's Torah parshah (portion). She's a prolific reader, adventurous knitter, and always gives reviews of everything she tries - encouraging and tempting us all to try new books, tools, and knitting patterns.
Strings & Yarn. Jodie impresses the hell out of me. I admit it. She knits beautifully, is very accomplished in general, and thought up/ organized the Charity Blanket Swap.
Crimson Mittens. Crimson's blog was probably the first blog I started reading outside my circle of friends. We're both members of that very small group, knitting Classicists. While she doesn't update as much as she used to (;_;), I still find her witty and thought-provoking. She also has a terrible habit of dragging me into swaps.
The Panopticon. I've been reading Franklin's blog for nearly as long as Crimson's (it's her fault), and am constantly provoked, worried, inspired, or amused by what he writes. I doubt he'll notice this, but it had to be included since I look forward to his posts more than I do the Harlot's.

So, wow. We should do this more often, y'all.

I was interested in the different purposes of all y'all's stashes. Everyone had a really special reason for stashing, it seemed to me, that wasn't even remotely related to greed. A comforting thought in this age of conspicuous consumption, eh? It also gives us the moral high ground in arguments over storage space.

Today I got the last of my dental 'work' done for the PC medical eval. Whether or not I'll need dental surgery is still uncertain (cross your fingers for me, please!), but at least I won't need to get my teeth looked at by a dentist for a loooong while (2 - 4 years from Sept 1, 2007 to be exact).

I tried to call my recruiter after, when the feeling in my face returned, but N was out. I need to catch him before agreeing to any invasive procedures, as it turns out that I DON'T have dental insurance right now (joy). I'm getting really, really sick of the Seattle Peace Corps' answering service, and nearly have the 1-800 # memorized (extensions, options, and all).

Oy.

In the end, not much was achieved today (is it already 2 am?) as dinner took over 2 hours to make, I had to rip my cotlin tank out to the neckline again, and tons of errands had to be run about town. Maybe tomorrow I'll actually get something done.

Not counting on it. But, it'd be nice. Oh, and ha, I checked the number of posts I need to catch up with on Bloglines (never look at the #, I swear I thought I was making progress) - 326 as of right now. People need to stop posting so frequently, really.

the purpose of a stash

2007-05-08T23:15:00.000-07:00

I've been battling a lethargy lately that has affected nearly every aspect of my life. My knitting had dropped off, in favor of reading or watching movies. Admittedly, some of that was due to the antibiotics. But since the vast majority of my projects are stockinette right now, that excuse doesn't hold too much water for very long.

I'd pick up my cotlin project and knit a row and then find an excuse to abandon it. The silk jumper (aka peacock pullover) lay hidden in a cotton bag. Lace sitting unfinished taunted me.

When I told myself that it was too hot to knit, I decided to take the dog for a walk. It's a perfect 3 mi to and from The Knit Shop, and maybe they'd have something new I'd want - a book, a magazine, a pair of needles. Because, as my Dad says:

Buying supplies is the best way to get started without actually doing anything.

The walk was great, Charlie was a rascal (I'm working on training him to heel, sit, and stay), and when I got to TKS I tied him up outside. I walked in and greeted the two people there, and immediately the latest issue of Interweave Knits on display. Greedily, I snatched it up to check out this season's patterns. Impressed, I immediately bought it and set out (the fact that Charlie kept barking prevented much small talk).

When I got home, I let Mum look through the magazine and we critiqued each piece. Several caught our eyes. I considered ripping out my cotlin WIP in favor of starting anew. Then decided against it, out of sheer practicality.

Mum and I watched TV for awhile, but then I had to leave for the Peace Corps Nominee Potluck. Which went exceedingly well. I won a PC baseball cap (for Dad) by being able to name the 3 goals of the PC mission.

When we got home, I went into my room to deal with all sorts of stuff. (I'm nearly up to date with everyone's blogs now, well mostly.) Finally, when everyone turned down the idea of a movie, I admitted defeat and went to fetch my cotlin. But, something happened. Struck by a sudden realization that I don't have a pair of socks on my circs, I got up to look at my stash chest. I pulled out the top drawer and thought:

OH. Yes. This is why I knit.

Jewel tones and hand-painted variegates, ultrafine fiber blends, exotics, and handspun sat in the drawer. I stared at the different skeins and balls of yarn, struck by too many ideas at once. 4 pairs of socks wanted to be knit. Opera gloves in teal or white? A spencer or a bolero? Two boleros? I dug and picked up different skeins, examined them, and put each back to look at another.

Eventually, I grabbed a ball (2 skeins) of Gloss and my knitting notebook and started designing. I cast on a swatch and periodically stopped to sketch, fingering the cloth I'd knit. It would be perfect for a summer bolero, to wear over tank tops on cool nights. As I flipped through the book, looking for my measurements page, I saw the design for the cotlin tank. I paused, put my pencil to the page with one hand and, with the other, I pulled the tank out of my bag and started on it again:

As of tonight, I finally have the neckline figured out. I ended up rummaging around in another stash drawer, to find the other balls of cotlin so I could work both sides of the neckline at once. It hit me, as I sat there knitting away happily for the first time in too long that this was what a stash was really for.

Inspiration. It's seductive and encouraging at the same time. And, best of all, it keeps me busy.

What is your stash to you?

uck

2007-05-07T22:39:00.000-07:00

“There are many examples of women that have excelled in learning, and even in war, but this is no reason we should bring 'em all up to Latin and Greek or else military discipline, instead of needle-work and housewifery.”
Bernard Mandeville

Now, me personally, I wonder why we can't have both. Funny thing.

Still feel horrible. Still haven' achieved much. Here's the list:

all my crap (well, the non-clothing) has been sorted and either boxed up for keeps or for not
my drum carder is clean and ready to be boxed up until later
and the ends are woven in on my Charity Blanket square:

Other than that? Not much to report. I've been sleeping a lot. And just sitting quietly. Antibiotics always make me weird(er), so this is sorta 'normal' now. Everyone in the family expects me to act a bit off during the drug course. I never do much when I have an infection.

This blog post is just thrilling, eh?

Well, actually, I have a movie review to share (watching movies isn't too difficult right now, unlike knitting). Mum and I rented Dream Girls, curious about Jennifer Hudson's performance. All the reviews we'd heard/ read were true. She and Eddie Murphy stole the movie, they were just that fantastic. Jamie Foxx and Beyonce Knowles were great, but clearly upstaged. The music was fantastic, and the wardrobe fabulous. I'd definitely recommend it if you are a fan of R&B/ Motown/ or musicals in general. The allusions to Billie, Aretha, and The Supremes were not missed. Nor was Murphy's hilarious mimicry of James Brown.

Now, it definitely deserves the PG-13 rating, as there's drug use and some sexuality. But, all in all, it was an excellent film. Honestly, I really want to steal Jennifer Hudson's wardrobe (for the '60's portion, anyway).

And that's everything I can think of. My email backlog is up to a week deep now, and I just can't deal with checking it right now. I'm sorry if I'm ignoring you (I really am), and I'll try and get myself to do it tomorrow.

sigh

2007-05-03T23:27:00.000-07:00

One tooth has been drilled and filled.
Two wisdom teeth have been removed from the list to be removed. All I need to do is get the oral surgeon to agree that the other two are fine where they are.
I have a UTI, 5 days worth of one antibiotic (the name is so long I'm not even trying), and another SIX WEEKS worth of Macrobid. Both are to make sure we kill the bacteria off for good this time. Wow, lucky me.
Three bras were found to my liking at Macy's. It wasn't as excruciating as it could have been, but the experience remains as unpleasant as ever. Mum made me get measured again, certain my size had changed. It hadn't. We still had difficulty finding it - not as much as St M, but it was lame that the only bras in my size were white or beige (black if I was lucky).
No progress was made on emptying my former bedroom today - a dental appointment, urology appointment, filling prescriptions, hunting down bras and getting home alive in The Storm (hail!, and lots of it) prevented that.
I knit 1" on my Cotlin tank top. I need to weave in the ends on the Charity Blanket tomorrow. Remind me.
I finished Wintersmith last night, and can't wait for the next book. Oh, well. Thud! is waiting for me at the EPL. I also have two of St M's loans on the shelf next to me... I'm so glad I'm able to read again.

underwired

2007-05-03T00:54:00.000-07:00

I scrubbed and scrubbed and scrubbed today, and finally got my bathroom cleaner (I didn't manage the mold as well as I'd like to admit during Uni), for it's next occupants/ users. I also transferred my various cosmetics to the bathroom I'm now sharing with Emm. We're both a bit weirded out by having to share a bathroom again, I think.

While I was acting like Cinderella, Mum and Dad went to pick out a new washing machine (they were painfully polite and tense when they left, I'm so glad I missed all of that). They came back and we decided to have (a very late) lunch before moving the old one out (it died last yesterday). As Mum was making us grilled cheese, Dad decided to use his time more efficiently (I guess) and unplug the old machine.

Without checking to see if there was water still in it.

At this point, St M called to check on me (she read yesterday's post). I had to hang up on her when Dad started screaming because, well, water was spurting everywhere. Fun (well, it was amusing to watch Dad try and stop the water with his hand, a la The Little Dutch Boy). After lunch I got some more Moving done, looked at the clock and ran to change. As I gathered my stuff for Homework Club, I paused to check my reflection.

And stopped. Squinted. What the hell?

My shirt had acquired it's own tent. I pulled my shirt off to see that my underwire had poked out of the bra and was sticking out and up by about 4". Wow. That's classy. 3rd bra to malfunction in the past 2 weeks.

That means that the Dreaded Bra Shopping will have to commence soon (heaven help me), and I shall have to actually step foot inside a lingerie department/ or store. Pray for me.

Anyway. Homework Club went well, but we ran over by 1/2 an hour (not a bad thing). Then EWEs, which was fun. Our hostess makes a wicked dessert. It was also good to sit and chat with people who are not my relatives (you have no idea of my joy). 'Twas good. R (a former PC volunteer) insisted I come to the Nomination Party (the going away party for PC nominees) - which cheered me muchly.

Both at the gathering and at home I worked on the Charity Blanket, and I'm finally done knitting. Everyone's commented on the size of my piece, but I think it's fine. Now all I have to do is weave in all the ends and find some goodies for Penny.

Thank you everyone for your comfort. I'm feeling a bit better now, and have come to accept that I have no control over the situation (damn, that sucks). And that people clearly do change as time goes on, even without the influence of addictive substances.

a year later

2007-05-01T22:35:00.000-07:00

and we are still driving each other crazy.

Mum mentioned today that it had been a year since she had gone into Serenity Lane. I just checked my archives, and found out it'll be a year in 12 days. Either way, I doubt the situation is going to change much. We're all too over-extended and emotional right now.

Dad's talking about a legal separation. Mum mentioned getting her own apartment.

There. I admitted it. I am not twelve, and can accept that my parents are heading towards a divorce. I still retain hope that it won't happen, but that hope is slowly dying. It's as if they've both forgotten how to compromise. I never thought I would see my parents snipping at each other like this.

It's so frustrating. And depressing. I've been having real problems with my depression in the past couple of days (add that to the amount of Move work I've been doing and I haven't felt up to posting). I made myself work today, and got most of my stuff moved into the smaller bedroom. It all fits, barely, with a little room to spare. We (Dad and I) had to get inventive. I also had to box up half of my stash (weep not for me, we all knew this was coming).

But, despite the smaller room, I like having a regular bed again. The loft was nice for space conservation, but I couldn't sit and read a book on it it or knit or anything but sleep on/ in it. To ensure reader goodwill, here's a pic of the progress:

(from the door: my spinning wheel & the new-ish bed with my Gryffindor quilt)

(desk w/ laptop and Lapis, and more new-ish furniture)

Most of my furniture is too big for this room, so we had to rummage around for smaller pieces. It'll do until whatever happens next. I have my dental appt. on Thursday to deal with my cavity, and then I get to battle a dental surgeon about my wisdom teeth.

I still haven't called the Peace Corps yet (would you have remembered with this lot around? no, I didn't think so), but I got an invitation to a Peace Corps going away party for nominees to meet each other before we're all shipped off. Honest to goodness, that's what it says. Mum and Dad stopped bickering long enough to agree that this was a very positive sign.

So... yeah. That's what I've been up to. Well, mostly. I've also been working on the Charity Swap Blanket (I have! I even bought yarn for it on Saturday), and I've read two books in as many days. Terry Pratchett is my one, true love.

I'm onto A Hat Full Of Sky (I never got to read it when it was first released, that was during Uni) and I have Wintersmith sitting here for next - both courtesy of the EPL (my back-up one, true love).

And that IS everything. I'm gonna try and finish that book tonight...

FO: Monkey

2007-04-27T23:48:00.000-07:00

I have to say that the pattern was fun, but I hate stockinette heels. Next time, I'll just change it. The yarn was lovely, and even though I knit it from the inside and outside of the skein - the stripes matched up perfectly. Until the heels. Then they reversed for a short period. But the socks went back to matching after the insteps, so I'm happy, and the weird arches are growing on me. TheBon was kind enough to take a couple of shots for me (she even reminded me, too):

Pattern Specs:

The Pattern: Monkey (from Knitty)
Knitting Start Date: April 15, 2007
Finish Date: April 26, 2007
The Yarn: Cherry Tree Hill Supersock, "African Grey"
The Needles: 2 Addi Turbo 24" US 1 circular needles
The Size: 8"/ Women's M
Knitting Technique: Continental, 2 socks on 2 circs

So, yay, they're done, but I kinda miss working on them. I need to cast on another pair of socks (just to have to tote around, if not for any other reason), but I'm having trouble choosing a pattern. (suggestions are always welcome)

Umm, quick timeline, before I pass out from exhaustion:

I finally fell asleep after 4 am (it was one of those horrible things where I couldn't sleep because I needed to sleep)
I got up at 7:45 am exactly (eugh)
I arrived at TheBon's appt at 8:30-ish.
We went to meet with the seamstress that's altering TheBon's gown. She was very personable and seemed quite competent and sensible. She agreed with TheBon's request to remove her train. The gown's gonna be gorgeous.
We went and got breakfast and then skiddadled over to VRC (local mall) to look for men's ties for the Best Man. After dawdling in the knitting section at Barnes and Noble (my fault) and a massive hunt (3 stores!!), we admitted defeat. Men don't wear ties very often in Eugene.
We got lunch, TheBon photographed my socks and we ended up parting ways
At 2:30 pm, I arrived home and collapsed. I was woken later for The Move stuff.
We watched The Prestige again. It made much more sense this time, and I had to admit that the film editing might be the best I've seen. It was very tight.
And here I sit, typing, ready for bed. So, nightnight.

(also, yep, we watched the deleted scenes, and outakes, of The Boondock Saints - very funny!)

going green

2007-04-27T01:50:00.000-07:00

“It is good to realize that if love and peace can prevail on earth, and if we can teach our children to honour nature's gifts, the joys and beauties of the outdoors will be here forever.”
President Jimmy Carter

We didn't get a single Move thing done today. And thank heaven for that. We all needed a break. Emm celebrated his sudden freedom by playing WoW all day. Dad puttered in his office. Mum and I went on a hike at Mt Pisgah Arboretum:

4-27-07 (Mt Pisgah)

For once I actually brought my camera. Something even more wondrous just because it's spring and Mt Pisgah is celebrating with everything it's got. All the wild flowers were in bloom, the birds were practically shrieking they were singing so loudly, and the weather was gorgeous (not that the butte could control that, but it helped). I took tons of pictures (97 in total), but only uploaded the 18 I liked best, or thought unusual. I might even get to uploading them to Flickr, but right now Picassa is easier on my laptop.

After our very long hike (seriously, 2 hours), we were feeling quite giddy. It was so gorgeous out. We went and got frozen yogurt and ran errands. I convinced Mum to run by the market, so I could grab vegetables. When Dad and I do the shopping, he makes me feel guilty for wanting to buy celery (which I love to munch on, btw). But, with Mum, she encourages the healthy eating. So... yeah, whenever she's in town (well, she'll be back permanently on Monday), I drag her out grocery shopping.

A girl can only look at potato chips without sighing so many times.

After resting up from out long hike (during which point I cast on the front of my peacock pullover - did I mention that both sleeves are done? No? bad me ^_^), I started on dinner. I made the boys eat vegetables. It's good for them.

Though, I admit, I was selfish and kept all the sugar-snap peas for myself. The boys think it's weird to eat them with the shell still on. Clearly, they don't appreciate the concept.

During dinner, we watched Night at the Museum. I've already reviewed this one, I think, so I'll just say that I loved it (again). Still funny. Little things about the historical characters were off, but not annoyingly so, so I'll let it pass.

When the movie ended, Emm and Dad retreated to their rooms, but Mum and I decided to watch The Prestige (the boys weren't interested). And, wow. OMG. That movie was amazing. It was one of the greatest mind f*cks I've ever had. I actually got some of the plot twists before they were revealed, and shrieked at weird moments (no, I'm not spoiling it) to Mum's puzzlement. Until the end, when she realised why I was so horrified, and freaked out herself.

We've already vowed to watch it again tomorrow, just to try and understand it better. Great movie. The Edwardian clothing was fantastic, btw.

And now I've just realised that I have to be at TheBon's house for her fitting in 6 hours. Wow. I am so screwed. I'd better get some caffeine ready now to drink after my nap...

playing catch up

2007-04-26T01:41:00.000-07:00

Been very very busy the last few days. Tired from lack of sleep. I still haven't called the Peace Corps, mostly because I haven't had a chance to/ remembered until after 5 pm. But, I did (FINALLY!) get some batteries. So, I have an extremely belated pic of the package Maura sent (sans hilarious book):

My new stash-guarding duck
A piratey rubber duck (I think he's Big Orange's side kick...)
Several types of tea with honey sticks (mmm, teeaa)
And (er, not pictured, being lent to St M) Heroics For Beginners (really funny!)

Thank you, Maura!

Other things to note before I pass out on my keyboard:

The side bedroom is completely cleared out (exc for the closet, if I'm gonna be honest, but who cares about my grad robes in a closet anyway?).
I've offered to just move into the smaller bedroom, so we don't have to play a full game of musical rooms. Instead of Emm moving into the smaller room, me into his room, and my parents into my room (I have the master 'suite') - I'll just move my 'necessaries' (bed, stash, spinning wheel, laptop, fishy) in, pack/ or "Evanesco" the rest (need a magic wand), and the 'rents can move into my room more quickly. Thus making the whole process easier and quicker, so the house can go on the market sooner. Aren't I a good daughter?
Over half of the china is wrapped and packed (I am soooo sick of wrapping plates right now).
Three pieces of furniture are on craig's list.
Mum is about to lose her driver's license - for missing a court date and NOT paying two speeding tickets. Oh, yes, you heard me. She claims that she was targeted for her out of state plates. We all just roll our eyes.

And, movie review time, we just finished The Boondock Saints. I made the family watch (exc for Emm, who'd already seen it a loved it) to their bemusement, on Stephieface's recommendation (thank you, btw!). Within 5 mins they were practically rolling on the floor. Both Mum and Dad are intimately familiar with South Boston. Half of Mum's family were IRA supporters.

Anyway. Movie. Yes. Hilarious. Witty. Incredibly violent (not judging that here, just warning). Willem Dafoe was fantastic. Just bloody brilliant. He must be the most self-confident man in the world. I'm a big fan of the risks he takes in roles. Though, I never, ever, ever want to see him in drag again... *shudder* ... The brothers were adorable, I wanted to cuddle them - murdering vigilantes that they were and all. I wanted the Latin tatts they sported. Yum. I also loved the end because it wasn't the typical Hollywood tragic, operatic, moral ending. Also, the soundtrack kick @ss.

About 10 mins after the movie finished, I finished something else:

My pair of Monkey socks!

The ends are woven in, they fit, and all I have to do is block them. I'm also planning on begging TheBon to take better pix of them after I go to her wedding gown fitting on Friday. I'm kinda excited about that (the fitting, not the pictures), since I'll be the first person to see the modified gown (or how it's gonna be modified, anyway). And it has a corset I want to see.

I am so tired. I've been bad about my email. I'm really sorry if I haven't replied to a message you sent me, but hopefully I will be able to soon.

still haven't found the blasted batteries.

2007-04-22T23:44:00.000-07:00

They AREN'T in the basement cupboard, I'm certain of it. My father MUST be lying (or demented). *snarl* I'll confront him on it tomorrow.

So, sorry, no pix of Maura's package :( Nor of my progress on the knitting front, but I can detail what I have being up to, and where I am:

past the heel and onto the instep of the first of little D's spox (royal blue cotton)
finished the 4th border repeat of Vivaldi
an inch past the last instep decreases on Monkey
finished the sleeve pattern for the Peacock pullover, knit one, BO it off and tested it against the back - and IT FITS! I actually managed to come up with a sleeve cap and shoulder that fit together!!
and, in spinning, I've started on the 2 oz of Chasing Rainbows merino/cashmere in 'hyacinth". It's lace-weight. I have no idea what I'll knit with it once it's plied with the matching silk/ cashmere. It's probably destined to become "core stash", in all honesty.

I also have a picture of baby T my sister sent me, to make up for my lack of progress documentary evidence:

AAAWWWWWWW.

I also had another book idea at around 4 am (couldn't sleep, terrible insomnia). I have to call the Peace Corps in the morning. Mum and Dad have decided to call the Peace Corps' bluff. They want assurances that I am practically accepted, before they dish out the 5 grand to have my wisdom teeth pulled out. Otherwise, it ain't happening.

Joy.

This might explain why I'm so tense. Cross your fingers for me...

still can't find the AA batteries

2007-04-20T22:00:00.000-07:00

“Every kind of peaceful cooperation among men is primarily based on mutual trust and only secondarily on institutions such as courts of justice and police.”
Albert Einstein

... so I present you with a poster for the movie Emm and St M and I saw this afternoon:

Review? Funny as hell. Exactly what one'd expect from the makers of Shaun of the Dead (which Emm and I both loved, incidentally). All 3 of us were carded, since it's rated R. And, rightfully so, I'd guess. There were a couple of grisly scenes that upset my brother, of all people. I was fine, and only winced in one scene.

All in all we agreed that it was a hilarious spoof of action movies (it had it's serious points, too, in the movie's defense). I particularly liked the homage to Point Break and Bad Boys II *snickering*. It also took me the better part of the movie to identify several actors from the BBC. And St M pointed out that it was Cate Blanchett as the protagonist's ex (she was wearing a mask and crime scene unit suit).

Lots of fun (if pricey! I can't even recover from the price of snacks). We got home, spent some time with Mum, ate dinner - well, everyone but Mum (who's sick) and Emm (who's just picky) - and got tons of knitting done. I'm nearly past the insteps of Monkey. Yay.

And that's about it.

(oh, p.s.: St M and I were much better behaved this time, and no one noticed us making snarky remarks over the previews anyway...)

on the down low

2007-04-19T23:38:00.000-07:00

I've been in one of my "low" periods the past couple of days. Ever since talking to the Peace Corps dentist, if I try and pinpoint it. I'm feeling better now, and finally forced myself to tackle my inbox. I'm sorry if I'm a bit late replying to a message you sent, but I promise to respond soon.

Things to cheer me up? Maura sent me a really sweet and considerate "thank you" package. Including her papier-mâché ducky, to guard my stash. I'll post pix once I find the bloody AA batteries that the males have hidden from me (they have, I swear it's so, no matter how much they deny it).

Also, my sister sent me this picture (well, a batch of them) of baby T:

Who is still THE CUTEST baby on the face of this planet.

And, no, I am not biased. The picture clearly speaks for itself. Duh.

Bad news? Well, no, not bad. Just exhausting, really. I feel like sharing this because of CrazyAuntPurl's post. I was dragged from my room last night by my little brother (who now towers over me, has a beard and grer hair) whilst he had the mental breakdown of the century. He had not only stopped up the toilet but it was overflowing (oh, yes, having an autistic sibling is a joy to behold) and a small lake was forming in the bathroom - and slowly spreading towards our oak floors.

Joy.

He (being OCD about cleanliness) was freaking out worse than I do when faced with spiders. So, I sent him off to find some mythical rags (which were in the wash, not under the sink, snerk) whilst I got to cleaning up the mess. I bleached every single surface I could and got the bathroom clean and dry and smelling normal again and everything.

I made him shower, I showered, and all was declared good and fine. He retreated to his room.

But, hahaha (snerk), he still won't use that bathroom now. Won't even step in there.

Fabulous. He'd taken to using Mum's and Dad's, but they're back from Olympia now. I told Dad about this and he just sighed.

Yep. That's my response, too.

floodgates

2007-04-17T21:13:00.000-07:00

“Man is the only animal that laughs and weeps; for he is the only animal that is struck with the difference between what things are and what they ought to be.”
William Hazlitt

I have spent half of today crying, it feels like. Yesterday, I received another packet from the Peace Corps. I tried to call them, but as they're located on the East Coast, it didn't get through. After several failed attempts today, I managed to connect with their Medical Eval dentist.

I had, it turns out, received my entire dental eval packet back. Because the dentist I ~~am stuck with~~ see in Eugene decided that I needed to have my wisdom teeth extracted (they're not even through the gums yet), I was informed that I could not be accepted into the Peace Corps until the teeth were removed.

I got frustrated. My childhood/ teens dentist had insisted to my mother and I that I never, ever attempt to have my wisdom teeth removed until they had "erupted". There was a high chance that I wouldn't need them removed. It would be expensive and just a general nuisance. It bears mentioning that my childhood dentist worked at NIH and taught as a Professor of Dentistry in Washington, D.C.

It also doesn't help the situation that I don't trust Eugenian dentists as far as I can throw them. Having one drill two teeth for no fricking reason made me paranoid and wary (you never, ever want to hear your dentist say, "oops," and I have - twice). The fact that one of the teeth the incompetent "Dr" T drilled still hurts to this day pisses me off to no end.

I tried to explain to the PC dentist that I had my reasons for contesting. I finally broke down in tears and explained to him why I didn't want these people messing with me teeth. He finally agreed that if I got a second opinion that "strongly" supported my claim, he'd let it pass.

By that time, I was crying over the phone (the thought of letting amateurs fuck around with my teeth does that to me), and freaked out by how much this whole thing was going to cost.

There's no way I'm getting out of having my teeth drilled, I accept that. One of the cavities I accept responsibility for. The other "spot" (no, it's not a cavity) "could become a cavity", doesn't worry me half as much as letting someone drill it.

Been there, done that. The last time it turned out that my enamel had been discoloured by my braces.

("oops")

Wow, that's powerful stupid, isn't it?

I came downstairs still sobbing, and really upset my Dad enough that he didn't even complain about how much the dental work is going to cost. And cost it will, the Peace Corps doesn't reimburse for dental work. Dad also came up with several suggestions for ways of circumventing the system that might work. He also suggested that I consider giving up on the Corps and just go to business school instead.

That is NOT an option. I told him so, and he just sighed. Seriously, I've come this far, I'm not giving up now. I'm nearly done with the acceptance process.

We ended up getting no work done today, as I kept tearing up at odd moments. Dad and I ran several errands, he took me to lunch and didn't even complain when I asked to look for invitations for TheBon's bridal shower. I found some that I plan on showing to Emmos tomorrow.

I ended up taking a nap when we got home. I was so emotionally exhausted that I could barely stand. Crying never makes me feel better. I remember reading in my teens that women and men were physiologically different when it came to the act of crying. Women, the article claimed, were supposed to receive some sort of emotion "release" due to the release of chemicals in the brain. Men, the article claimed, do not experience this phenomenon.

Whether it's true or not, this has never happened to me. I always feel just awful after crying.

Anyway, after my nap and dinner, I got two repeats done on Monkey:

I'm one pattern repeat from starting the heels. That's something, I guess.

I think I'm going to go and sit quietly. Maybe a bubble bath will help.

Überdork Strikes Again

2007-04-16T21:55:00.000-07:00

“It is better to remain silent and be thought a fool, than open one's mouth and remove all doubt.”
Samuel Johnson

At least the soda I spilled (all over the bloody table) didn't stain anyone's yarn or clothing. Notice that I put the yarn first. Even so, I felt like the biggest heel in existence. This feeling was not helped as I continually made weird comments and just confused people all night. St M was a good person (and friend) and played along with me.

My new charm bracelet helped me distract two of the ladies I nearly soaked. They were beaders and fascinated by it. So, I dutifully handed it over and no more mention was made of my clumsiness. (I got it back, never fear)

The charm bracelet came from the Handspun/ Handcrafts Swap. I received my package today and had to immediately put on the jewelry Miss Violaceous made for me. I took way too many photos to post, so I'm only going to include one of the handmade goodies and just let you check the link to see everything (especially the DIY World Domination Kit and instructions)... Anyway, here're the pretties she made for me:

Starting at the top, and then left to right:

a knitting wrist bag (squee!)
an Art Nouveau charm bracelet
an herb-filled amigurumi octopus
sunflower seeds for the garden
stitch markers
a "faux" nouveau brooch
a vintage cameo
and Lady Godiva earrings

I took the knitting bag to Mme DeFarge's tonight to try it out - it's wonderful! I loves it muchly (it even has eyelets for colourwork, y'all!). It's staying in my sling-bag to protect my knitting projects from now on. Monkey likes it, too, the socks were so well behaved in their bag. Unlike the lace stole, which is in bad humor right now.

In other (nonKnitting) news, I got ANOTHER packet from the Peace Corps today. Oh, yes, another. Apparently, the Dental Eval form wasn't filled to their liking. I need to prove that I've had the dental work my dentist claims I "need" (like hell). I am so angry with the physicians around here right now, it doesn't bear mentioning. But, at least I still am in the running, eh?

And more news. My Weight Loss Challenge. I have lost 4 lbs! I went to a doctor today (verily, I have many) and got on the scale and... yay! The nurse was surprised that I was excited about my weight, but whatever.

Finally, I am a little weirded out. My little brother has, get this, grey hairs! I keep seeing these glints of silver every time he shakes his head. My brother is 19! So weird, and so wrong. I can't even handle it. I've only had one white hair - and Mum said it didn't count as it was obviously just from a dead follicle.

Again, just too weird.

more fun than a barrelful of...

2007-04-15T00:17:00.000-07:00

Monkeys? I have to say that I AM enjoying the pattern, and the yarn. Especially the yarn. Cherry Tree Hill yarn are going to be the death of me (and my yarn diet), I can just See it. I would have liked to have taken a picture of my Monkey progress in the garden, with daylight, but I didn't have the chance all day. (cue tonight's ~~quote~~ soundtrack:)

The sun is a mass of incandescent gas...
They Must Be Giants

So, I present a flashy, washed out, floor pic of the Monkey progress instead:

I love this yarn. The colours appeal, of course, but it's so soft and shiny and, well, yummy that I'm having a hard time putting it down. Anyway. I have other Knitting News:

I have FINISHED Mum's pair of Spox.

The antique (envy-worthy) buttons are on, the ends are woven in, and the look very nice (if I may say so myself). She'll be happy, and hopefully will leave me alone for a bit on knitting her things (foolish, I know). She's not going to be allowed to wear them until I get pictures for the pattern submission, though, so for now (well, once she gets here) she can only fondle them.

Otherwise, the only other progress I have to report is moving progress. The Sewing Room/ Guest Bedroom/ Side Room (choose a name, any name!) is nearly cleaned out. My back aches like a little old person's. I am so sick of packing that all I want is to set the house on fire, to avoid filling another box.

Well, after I get my stash to a safe place, anyway.

chamomile and spearmint

2007-04-14T01:26:00.000-07:00

“Thank G-d for tea! What would the world do without tea? How did it exist? I am glad I was not born before tea.”
Sir Philip Sidney

Now, I'm not quite that devoted to my evening tea, but I do appreciate it. I'm brewing some chamomile/ spearmint tea right now, in hopes of it making me sleepy. And if it doesn't work, at least I really like chamomile, right? I wish we had some in the garden. I loved Brookside Gardens back home (D.C.) because there was this old English-style garden, and between the flagstones chamomile had been planted, so it was amazingly fragrant wherever you stood.

Back to our garden. I suppose even the most fragrant herb wouldn't have helped me today (the mystery herb didn't help, that's for sure) as I took out the most tenacious grass I've ever encountered. I also got out as much of the plum tree roots as I could (again, this thing's a weed itself!). It helped that the weather's been rainy the past few days, so the soil was loose.

I was muddier than an earthworm by the time I was done, but hey, the grass and roots were gone from one of the beds (two, now) - only two to go!

After that, Dad, Emm and I went on the Mad Sneaker Hunt of 2007. It wasn't quite as exciting or daring as The Great Apron Hunt of 2006, but it came close. I ended up with 2 pairs of Sketchers sneakers (my first new pair(s!) of trainers in, er, 3 years, I think). I also found some cute sandals. We ended up in Springfield (10 points to me as navigator) to find the second pair at a sister store.

In the end, it was Dad who suggested getting me the second pair - after we went through nearly every damn brand in the store. In European sizes, I'm a 37/8. But, in American, well, only G-d knows. I fit 6's - 7.5's.

Shoe standards?

I think not.

In Knitting News - I finally found replacement needles for this project:

And before you ask, no, I did NOT sit on it. I have absolutely no fricking idea how the needle ended up that way. I had it in my sling backpack, and I pull out the project to work on and... well, wow. I tried bending it back, but it didn't work. And I shall use it to poke the first person to suggest Viagra.

I'm gonna transfer the stole to the new needles tomorrow later today. And now my tea is cool enough to drink.

MMM... chamomile.

reader's choice time

2007-04-12T22:51:00.000-07:00

Just to prove that I am not completely fixated on teeny, tiny gauged things (hey, I was starting to wonder, myself). Last night I just couldn't even look at my knitting projects any longer. They were slowly driving me insane. So, as I dug around in my stash I found 3 balls of complimentary yarn (oh, alright, I bought the blue to compliment the purple on purpose) and uncovered a pattern they were perfect for:

The Stripy Beret from the July 2006 issue of Simply Knitting. Project specs?

Yarns: Garnstudio Silk/ Alpaca (yarn A) - it was the yarn from my second Magic Yarn Ball - and Nashua Julia (yarn B), which I bought to match the Garnstudio. Both are obscenely soft and luscious. I had to resist the urge to rub myself against it on the needles. I didn't bother to resist the urge after it was finished...
Needles: US 7's and 10's
Gauge: 16 sts & 20 Rs (to a 4" square) on larger needles
Size: er... mine?
Pattern: Stripy Beret by Claire Vallans
Recipient: ME!
Knitting time: 5 hours, max

Now all I need to do is put on the finishing touch - the embellishment to pin down the fold permanently. Right now I like the flower that Crimson crocheted for me (pictured) - but I'm worried about it clashing or being too big. Opinions? I always can use one of our "one of a kind" antique buttons, but I've been wanting to use the flower Crimson made me for a while now, on a hat in particular (because I'm all about the funky hats, man).

So, yeah. Cast your vote.

Next. The Move stuff is going well. I packed up over a dozen boxes of stuff today, and moved another dozen. My back and knees hurt so much by the end of the day, I was moving around like a little old lady. Blech. At least I got to knit afters, though.

And, thank you everyone for the encouragement. I'm really going to have to be disciplined about my eating now. I also need to get more active exercise (moving boxes doesn't really count). I wanted to take the dog for a walk (I miss walking), but hurt too much by the end of the day...

Oy. Maybe tomorrow.

harsh reality

2007-04-11T20:34:00.000-07:00

“When we discover that the truth is already in us, we are all at once our original selves.”
Dogen

It's embarrassing and uncomfortable for me to admit, but I'm officially obesely overweight. I have 60 lbs to lose to get down to my ideal weight (screw the doctors, I looked wraithlike at their ideal weight). I finally admitted it to myself as I looked in Emmos' rearview mirror and saw how round my face has gotten. (It also hurts my pride that none of my clothes fit right now.)

Well. *$^% this.

I've decided, tonight, to do something about it. I've talked Dad around to letting me get the kitchen in order, so I can cook my own meals (I am so *$^%-ing sick of Wendy's). I'm also joining Weight Watchers Online (mostly because it's cheaper -> half the price of the meetings program).

So. Well. That's that, I guess. I'm also posting my Weight Loss Challenge on my sidebar (to mark my progress) just to keep myself honest (the same way I did with the 100 mi challenge). Hopefully I'll be much healthier by the time we move/ when(if) I go off to the Peace Corps.

In other news, Mum and I got into a series of rows today. I also got a lot of packing done:

(1/2 of my boxes, they're taking over the empty front room)

I hate packing glass and china - just such a pain. Arg. I'm always so certain it's not enough, but if I did wrap each piece "enough" I'd probably only get 2 to a box. I also got to pack up (for temporary storage) all the stuff going into The Sale. And I, on a whim, felt the need to take a shot of the strange alchemical-worthy vases Mum has...

And these aren't even half of them - these are just some being sold! I swear, my Mum's collection of glassware belongs in Rembrandt's The Alchemist (which The JSMA has a copy of, incidentally, I always loved to look at it). I feel like I should label them: Elixir of Youth, Essence of Beauty, Shrinking Solution, Polyjuice...

Knitting News? None. I haven't gotten any knitting done today - too busy arguing, packing, moving shite, arguing, tutoring at Homework Club, and arguing. Wow, lots of arguments there, huh? We're all so cranky right now.

I've got to figure out a way to get to sleep before 3 am tonight... we're getting up "bright and early" tomorrow to get a ton of work done, buy me some bloody vegetables, find shoes and an iPod skin for Emm's new pretty. So much to do.

And, of course, we'll have to also find time in there to argue, too.

I think I love my family

2007-04-11T01:07:00.000-07:00

... though, at this rate, I may just have to strangle them all in their sleep.

Mum came this morning to visit. After a nap, she immediately started criticizing every. single. bloody. thing. in the house. How we were storing unused items. How dirty the floor was. Why were the china and pots and pans all stored together? Why were there dirty dishes stacked on the counters?

How about because we've been working our asses off doing things like weeding, hauling crap off to the dump/ yard refuse place, and moving shite out to the storage shed.

Dad and Emmett finally concocted an excuse to escape (I decided to do laundry). Then, whilst weeding she managed to throw dirt and weeds on my head at least 3 x I can recall. Carelessness or passive aggressive?

I kept snapping at her, because a headfull of dirt isn't my idea of fun. She kept telling me not to take it personally. Right. Arguments ensued.

Over dinner (which should have been nice), she and Dad started arguing. I ordered a cease-fire, both parties ignored me, and kept snapping and snarling.

Joy.

I decided to ignore them both and cast on another test pair of spox (this time for the "alternate" pattern), until Mum finished her meal and we left. I then shoved the yarn and needles into my bag (bad, bad idea) only to seriously regret it later. It took me over 1/2 an hour to create order from the chaos and start knitting.

Oy.

At least I finally got my bath, right? (If we ignore the fact that I had to scrub the tub out twice, because Mum had plopped the grouting bucket down in it, creating a nice, gritty mess)

As I said, I think I love my family.

[P.S. Emm got an iPod today (finally!!) and of course spent the day walking around with his headphones in, trying to talk to people whilst listening to music. He'd also announce at odd moments what he was listening to, and why it rocked.]

{I need a vacation from these people}

mp3 angst, more yarn and a knitting meme

2007-04-10T00:09:00.000-07:00

“The world is a stage, but the play is badly cast.”
Oscar Wilde

Just another one of those days.

A Costco run was made (we have food again!) and Dad made the spur-of-the-moment decision to buy Emm that mp3 player he's been wanting. Because our father is a cheap bastard*, he edged away from getting Emm an iPod Nano. Emm was opposed to the iPod on principle, he claimed that they were only popular because of their name. I tried to convince him otherwise, but to no avail.

As soon as we were in the parking lot, Emm tore into the box and started fiddling with it (it's worth mentioning here that he didn't read the directions). When we got home, we all went our separate ways - me to photograph the lovely yarn and goodies Amanda at Bulldog Knits sent me as my Mystery Sock KAL prize:

Emm went, of course, to plug his mp3 player into his 'puter. Dad went to... well, I have no idea. I sat down on the bare floor, surrounded by my knitting bits and bobs. As I was working on the chart for a lace stole pattern I'm working on, I heard a banesidhe-worthy wail. I paused, pen hovering above the grid-paper. Another wail and Emm came rushing out of his room.

"It won't work!! You have to fix it!!" He demanded, looking rather on edge. I sighed, put my pen down and got up.

"Alright, you go and get me a gluestick from Dad and I'll fix it."

Well, I tried, anyway. After an hour of wailing and hair-pulling and mild hysterics on Emm's part, I finally figured out (after I sent him to bother Dad, the racket was driving me insane) that the mp3 player could not work with Emm's puter - he didn't have a High Speed 2.0 USB port.

Right.

Whatever that is**. In the duration, I got Rhapsody working (despite Emm's claims that you had to pay to subscribe, which you don't) and iTunes installed (just in case).

So, after several long arguments with both the males - Emm declared that he never wanted to see another mp3 player ever again, whilst Dad argued with everything I said (likely on principle). Could I really be certain that an iPod would work with Emm's computer? Well, even if my iPod did, there're no assurances that a new one would, are there? And on and on and on...

Finally, the mp3 player was put away when Dad and Emm agreed that Emm could use Dad's new(er) 'puter (which does, indeed, have these new-fangled "High Speed" USB ports) tomorrow to transfer his mp3 files to the player.

All's well that ends well, I suppose - except I had just spent over an hour arguing about mp3 players with two people who've never even used one. By that time, I was a bit twitchy and realised that I needed to start dinner.

St M arrived as I threw the rice in to simmer. We were planning on going to the Monday Night Knitters (after dinner) - until we found out that the truck's battery was dead (moral: never leave the lights on all damn day). So, we went back to watching Ninja Warrior and then Jon Stewart and Colbert. I want some of that ice cream, y'all.

St M went home at around 10. I finished the left spock - buttons and all, and have rewritten the pattern to also suit people who have larger ankles and insteps. People like me. Crazy thought, eh?

And, a knitting meme! Stolen from Tamara's blog:

Mark with bold the things you have ever done, with italics, the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest.

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn (I've got some to spin up!)
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffitti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)(I sooooo want to do this!)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting (??)
Dyeing with plant colours
Knitting items for a wedding (TheBon's wedding is coming up...)
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
Olympic knitting
Spinning
Knitting with someone else's handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles (but don’t like them)
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dyeing yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with selfpatterning/selfstriping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine (I'm working on it)
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets (uh, no. never.)
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair (ew)
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

I'm surprised because I've done nearly everything on the list, or plan to. Crazy kudos to me, I guess. And this post has gone on waaay too long. Night night.

*and I say that in the most loving way possible, but he really does make things difficult because of his skinflint tendencies.

** One would guess that it's a hopped up USB port; but I've never used one, that I know of.

clarifications

2007-04-08T23:10:00.000-07:00

“It is a good and gentle religion, but inconvenient.”
Mark Twain

TheBon brought it to my attention that it sounded (from yesterday's post) as though I had been unbearably rude during the Good Friday service. I was not. In fact, I think I was very well behaved. I did not make any disparaging remarks* until we left the church (I have Views about being rude/ disruptive during any religious ceremony, or in any place of worship). After we left I did, I admit, make some angry comments to Emmos about the service (practically in Parseltongue, I was hissing so much). And the congregates that I mentioned who were offended bloody well shouldn't have been listening in on our conversation, anyway. Eavesdropping isn't good manners, so pfft to them. It wasn't as if I stood in the middle of the church and screamed that they were all anti-Semites and should be ashamed of themselves (which I'm not implying, stop villianizing me :P).

TheBon and I met today (supposedly for Guild, but we were all by ourselves) where she practically scolded me. I explained what happened and then we got into a debate about modern Theology. In the end, we agreed on the fact that it's all f*cked because no one seems to want to get along. Seriously, would it kill them?**

The merits of Paganism were also discussed and set aside. Too impractical.

And, I feel I should mention that I'm in a much better mood now, anyway. I even smiled at the Starbuck's barrista when she wished me a "Happy Easter" and wished her the same as I walked away.

See? I'm not that bitchy. Not really.

Today was a long day. Everyone was cranky (including me) because nothing seemed to be working right. My beloved Kitchen Aid stopped working. I nearly cried, and it was the fact that I was near tears for a couple of hours that finally prompted Dad to start working on the thing.

I admit I was very upset when I confronted him after several failed attempts to get the thing started. 4 plugs and no go, and I was edging on hysterics. I need my Kitchen Aid. Dad insisted that nothing had been done to it whilst I was away, and that it had to be my fault that it wasn't working.

This theory didn't fly, nor was it received well.

"You're taking this really badly," he remarked. An hour later, he finally admitted to me that it had been left on the back porch, w/o any covering by the painters, while I was gone. Fabulous. Eventually it started working again (after 3 tearful hours), and I calmed down a bit.

By that time I had to leave to go to Guild. And, well, TheBon and I got lots of knitting done on our socks - her Jaywalkers and my second Spock. The toe of mine is completely done and the buttonhole gusset has been picked up. Just 9 rows to go, some ends to weave end, buttons to put on and I'll be done.

Woot :D And that is all, before I manage to offend anyone else...

*although I did make a couple of faces at Emmos, who returned them - we were mostly nonplussed by a certain pastor's "meditations" about modern heroes.

**I include the Jews in this - particularly some people I've met who won't so much as talk to non-Jews, or have called me a heretic for suggesting that Palestinians have as much right to Israeli land as Jewish settlers.

morales of last night's adventures?

2007-04-08T01:27:00.000-07:00

Never give Emmos a chance to listen to Blue Grass.
Never take a Jew to a Good Friday Service. Particularly when said Jew is a Classicist.
Never take 2 Classicists/ Costume Historians to a movie like 300
Never let said Classicists/ Costume Historians sit together, or next to an equally snarky/ sarcastic friend at said movie.
Never give said Classicists/ Costume Historians pen and paper after the movie.

Emmos came and picked me up last night to grab dinner before St M's choral recital/ Good Friday service. We ate, but still had time to waste so we went to Prince Puckler's ice cream parlor. Outside the shop was a Blue Grass band playing. A crowd had gathered around, eating ice cream. Emmos and I followed suit. Once some of the crowd has dispersed, I snapped a shot:

Emmos (and I) were enjoying the performance so much, we were late to the service. Which, all things considered, may have been a good thing. That way I missed two of the sermons. The chorus sang beautifully, there's no doubt of that. But, several times the only thing stopping me from storming out in a righteous rage was the fact that Emmos was blocking my escape and that we had (foolishly) chosen to sit in the 4th row. Bloody hell. Literally.

I'm actually a very patient person when it comes to comparative religions (hey, I support a woman's right to wear the Veil, or marry a polygamist, should she choose it). But, having been accused of "killing Jesus" (oh, yes, I have), my tolerance runs low around Easter (it's a sore spot for so many reasons). I especially don't like listening to people declaring that the Jews ordered the crucification of Jesus - if only because as a Classicist I can honestly declare that it was the Romans who had a crucification-fixation and that the Jews were, oh yeah, under Rome's boot at the time. They weren't telling the Romans what to do. That's like saying that the Iraqi insurgents are telling US forces what to do in Iraq.

It's also unfair to my mind to accuse the Jews of killing of Jesus (and several of the disciples) when the Jews were the ones who hid the Christians from the Romans during those 300 years of persecution.

Anyway. It's a sore spot, and this is not the place to poke at it. I admit that by the end of the service last night I was a bit.. frothy. I know I offended several congregates with my comments to Emmos about the complete historical inaccuracy, flagrant prejudice and (well, let's omit this bit) of John's Gospel. We left fairly quickly.

Now, before you scold me for walking into a Good Friday service and being offended, let us remember that I went to listen to St M (who invited me) and her choir's performance of several Motats. I admit that I was reluctant, but didn't want to offend anyone (St M's is also in the choir). So, I went.

And, in all fairness, I managed not to disrupt the service, snicker (unlike Emmos), or catcall (or whatever that was) during the final hymn. So, neider.

From there, we went to see the movie 300. Oh. My. First impressions?

I am so amazed we weren't kicked out, attacked, or that someone didn't at least dump their popcorn on our heads. Admittedly, the two guys sitting behind me (who were taking the movie entirely TOO seriously) started kicking my seat everything time St M or I shrieked with laughter, made a loud (sarcastic) comment, or collapsed into giggles. I was thus forced to move to the other side of Emmos, which only made the 3 of us louder.

It was... well. Highly amusing doesn't even cover it. I'm astounded at the fact that there were Ninjas, Bedouin, Olephants, War Rhinoceroi, and Cave Trolls at the Battle of Thermopylae. How this was omitted in my Greek History classes, I just don't know. I'm gonna have to confront the professor about that.

And Xerxes? Well. My. The gold-encrusted Speedo was soooo Persian, I just can't tell you. St M and I were frankly speechless at the costumes in the movie (mostly because we were cackling too hard to form words).

Now, let this not discourage you. The movie wasn't aalll bad. Stephieface was right, the man-flesh was extremely tasty. Emmos was particularly taken with the thighs. St M and I were both pleased with Faramir's transformation into Dilios (can't find a picture, sorry). Who knew?

After the movie, as we casually escaped the theater (amid some nasty glances), we started to list everything we could think of that was just plain wrong about the movie. When we got to Emmos' home, we wrote it down:

The list? One page, front and back, filled. St M has promised to post it to her blog this week. After that, we watched Little Miss Sunshine (which I've already reviewed, and still like). The girls found it amusing. Today, we were lazy. We went to several thrift stores and finally to The Knit Shop.

Twas good. Emmos spent her store credit. I met one of the Charity Blanket Swap participants (she doesn't have a blog, so no link). And, that's about it. I'm giving up because my connexion keeps dying (you would not believe the swear words I'm letting fly) and I'm sick of trying to work with it.

gonna be a long night

2007-04-06T16:36:00.000-07:00

But hopefully in a good way. St M's Good Friday recital is tonight and Emmos and I are going, and then we'll all be sleeping over at Emmos'. Everything before that is up in the air.

So, to fill the blog, here's an interesting, ah, thingy I stole from Crimson's blog:

"It's been alleged that if you’ve seen over 85 movies you have no life. Mark the ones you’ve seen. There are 239 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own blog, paste it in and put an X by the ones that you have seen. Add them up, figure out whether you’ve got a life or not, and post it."

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest
() Boondock Saints
( ) Fight Club
( ) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story (and Neverending Story 2!)
(X) Blazing Saddles
( ) Airplane
(X) The Princess Bride
( ) AnchorMan
( ) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
( ) Saw
( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
( ) Anger Management
(X) 50 First Dates
(X) The Princess Diaries
(X) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(X) Scream
(X) Scream 2
( ) Scream 3
( ) Scary Movie
( ) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
( ) Scary Movie 4
( ) American Pie
( ) American Pie 2
( ) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
(X) Harry Potter 3
(X) Harry Potter 4
(X) Resident Evil 1
( ) Resident Evil 2
( ) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
(X) The Village
( ) Lilo & Stitch
(X) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
( ) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
( ) Butterfly Effect
( )13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots
(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
( ) Universal Soldier
(X) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
(X) Never Been Kissed
( ) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
(X) King Kong
( ) A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
( ) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination
( ) Final Destination 2
( ) Final Destination 3
( ) Halloween
(X) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving Christmas
( ) Flubber
( ) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
(X) Practical Magic
(X) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
(X) Hellboy
( ) Secret Window
( ) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards
( ) The Whole Ten Yards
(X) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky
( ) Bride of Chucky
( ) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
( ) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
(X) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
( ) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number SlevIn
(X) Ocean’s Eleven
(X) Ocean’s Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremecy
(X) Lone Star
(X) Bedazzled
( ) Predator I
( ) Predator II
( ) The Fog
(X) Ice Age
(X) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
( ) Curious George
(X) Independence Day
() Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
() Christine
(X) E.T.
( ) Children of the Corn
( ) My Bosses Daughter
( ) Maid in Manhattan
(X) War of the Worlds
( ) Rush Hour
( ) Rush Hour 2
( ) Best Bet
( ) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
(X) She’s All That
(X) Calendar Girls
(X) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
(X) Event Horizon
(X) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
( ) Big Trouble in Little China
(X)The Terminator
(X) The Terminator 2
(X) The Terminator 3
(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X3
(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
( ) Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(X) Freaky Friday
(X) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
(X) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2
( ) Swimfan
( ) Miracle on 34th street
( ) Old School
( ) The Notebook
(X) K-Pax
(X) Krippendorf’s Tribe
( ) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
( ) The 40-year-old Virgin
(X) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
( ) Base-ketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
( ) Elf
(X) Highlander
(X) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
( ) Three
( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
( ) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willard
( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
( ) Hulk
( ) Dawn Of the Dead
(X) Hook
(X) Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
(X) 28 days later
( ) Orgazmo
( ) Phantasm
(X) Waterworld
( ) Kill Bill Vol. 1
( ) Kill Bill Vol. 2
(X) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
(X) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) the Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
( ) Army of Darkness
(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
(X) Ewoks: Caravan Of Courage
(X) Ewoks: The Battle For Endor
(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix: Reloaded
(X) The Matrix: Revolutions
(X) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead
( ) Evil Dead 2
(X) Team America: World Police
( ) Red Dragon
(X) Silence of the Lambs
( ) Hannibal

I'm not counting them. I already know I don't have much of a "life" by normal standards. Eh. I enjoy movies, anyway ;D Just thought it was an interesting list...

that is IT

2007-04-05T00:24:00.000-07:00

I was so doozy last night that I didn't manage to post the other half of my evening. I am such a ditz. Yesterday, St M came over and had our "alternative" Seder with us, I received my Knit Picks Cotlin (snarl), and the geometry is kicking my ass (hence the title of last night's post).

How is the geometry kicking my ass?? Do you remember back to the days when A*2 + B*2 = C*2? I do. Trying to apply such logic to knitting (specifically the instep decreases on a sock) is futile, idiotic, and insane all at once. I was near tears by the time I decided that I was not going to look at the damn Spox pattern for another 24 hours.

Then, this morning, hahaha. I had the crazy I idea to try something different. No, I am not going to explain it. It would take too long, and it brings back painful memories.

Anyway, that's the condensed second half of last night's post.

Onto tonight's post. Here's tonight's quote:

“Experience is the name every one gives to their mistakes.”
Oscar Wilde

The story of my life.

Moving on. Today I received my Handdyed Roving Swap parcel. Since I have too many photos, I'm going to direct you to the pictures on Flickr. After that (and battling the bloody Spox pattern) I went to Homework Club. Or so I thought. Apparently (although we hadn't been told) it was cancelled. Emmos took me, instead, to see her workplace. We then went on to dinner and the EWES. A local spinner we (the "babies", *snark*) all really like was this week's hostess. Here's Emmos, laughing, with her wheel:

(I spun the hand-dyed roving I received from girlbotgoods). I'd say C's first EWES hostessing gig went well, as Emmos and I didn't leave until after 10. We got there at 7. Twas lots of fun. Emmos offered to show me the "scenic" route home, and we proceeded to get lost. So, I got home at 11 pm after lots of star-gazing on some rural highway. I didn't care, it was fun.

Mum wanted to watch Casino Royale again, so I cast on a new project. I made it through the first 30 mins before I saw this:

I am very annoyed. I usually really like Knit Picks. I've been pleased with their lace and sock yarns. This, though, is really unacceptable. It's just awful, and I'm going to have to cut the entire mess out and weave in the ends. Joy.

It was as I stomped upstairs that I decided that, damn it, I needed to knit something for myself that required no shaping and yarn I knew wouldn't give me a headache. Mum's shawl is out of the question. The Queen of Cups nearly reduced me to tears. My silk pullover is beautiful but the yarn has slubs that I have to watch for (or else regret it eternally). The Spox, it turns out, are too big for me and are going to go to Mum.

So. I am casting on SOMETHING tomorrow with my Lorna's Laces Helen's Lace. I've wound it and know for CERTAIN that there are no knots, slubs, weird ends, or general ickyness.

This isn't Startitis. It's self-preservation.

the geometry is being mean to me

2007-04-04T03:09:00.000-07:00

If I could slur typed words, this post'd look like it was written by a drunken sailor. I am that exhausted. Clue #1: I wandered around for over an hour this afternoon (doing chores), wondering why my right foot felt funny, and then looked down, finally, to see this:

I decided that being barefoot was underrated (it just wasn't worth it to find the mate of either shoe) and I didn't need shoes to work on Mum's shawl, anyway. Here's my progress:

I re-BO the top edge (3 damn tries today, St M can vouchsafe her threat to take it from me if I didn't stop) with much almost-tears, whining, and hair-pulling. I then got the edging put onto nylon thread. It'll fit. Thank g-d. I just need to block it, to make the grafting easier.

After that we had the most original (read: heretical) Pesach Seder ever. Here were our 4 questions:

Why is tonight different from all other nights? Emm is actually eating Thai food!
Why are we reclining on a faux-leather booth in a Thai restaurant? Because we're too lazy/ tired to do an actual Seder! And it's quite comfy, really...
Why, on this night of nights, are we eating rice noodles and rice instead of bread? Because they're not leavened and they came with the meal.
What is this herb, and is it bitter? No, it's hot!

You might have guessed that, instead of pulling out the Haggadot and cooking a large meal, Mum and Dad decided that we would eat out and pretend (I tried, but was overruled). One of the Pepsi's acted as the 4 Cups of Wine. And the peanut sauce was the charoset. Wow, we're Bad Jews.

After that we went and were even Worse Jews, cuz (I tried to convince them to order a gluten-free cake!) we went to The Sweet Life and got dessert. Yeah. Bad boys, especially. I'm gonna try and be good and not eat bread for the remainder of Pesach, but the odds of that are increasingly slim.

Anyway. Mum's given her two week's notice at her job in Olympia - WA state doesn't have medical staffing requirements, so Mum and ONE aid (sometimes, if she's lucky she gets 3) get to handle 60+ patients a night. Wow, that's high quality medical care, eh? So, now Mum and Dad are looking at the Portland area. I'm staying out of it.

Other news... We watched Casino Royale last night (and again tonight), and I have to say it's my favourite of the Bond movies. Oh, heresy, I know. Aside from this Bond's major hotness (whoo!), the realism of the movie was very appealing (like the fact that Bond actually got beaten to a pulp several times and didn't wander through the movie w/o a hair outta place...). It was fun. Long, but fun. Mum said it was truer to the books than any of the other movies, too. So, there ya go.

And, now I am finally going to go to bed.

mulch and matzoh

2007-04-02T16:56:00.000-07:00

What do they have in common, aside from being flavorless and stiff? Well, that's about it, actually. Today, Dad and I turned this into this:

Eventually these benches'll be placed in there:

But right now, I am determined to sit very very quietly. And still. I've done my fair share of the weeding and need a break. Possibly in Hawaii.

Mum arrived this afternoon for Pesach. We're not doing a Seder tonight, we just don't have the energy or the materials (blasphemy I know). Tomorrow night, tho, we're doing the Second Night Seder. I've already taken in the votes, and it'll be a little unconventional (turkey breast instead of lamb). St M is coming over. Hopefully we'll find a place everyone can sit (Dad's determined that the oak floors shall remain untouched and pure and candidates for placement in the Temple of Vesta) and eat together. My one request is Matzoh Ball soup. It's my only food request. We're definitely doing my 1-hour Seder, though, just because.

Otherwise, that's it for today. I want to take a nap...

I love being right

2007-04-01T22:17:00.000-07:00

“Human life is as evanescent as the morning dew or a flash of lightning.”
Samuel Butler (doesn't exactly relate to this post, but I liked it, so here it is)

TheBon came over to dye the cloths for her place-settings today. We think it was successful, hard to tell when they're still wet, though. Hopefully (cross you're fingers for her, y'all! please?), they'll be exactly what she wants/ needs.

After that we went to "Guild" (it's really just TheBon, Emmos, St M and I at this point). TheBon had to leave early, after which St M let it drop that she had been on a date with so-and-so. HA! I might have startled the sorority chicks sitting nearby with my jubilant, "I KNEW it!", but it's so gratifying to be right every so often. Emmos was puzzled, because she hadn't met the man in question. St M distracted us, and it took us 3 tries to hear everything. Well. We shall have to wait and see.

Okay, this might seem weird, but both Emmos and I are just not dating right now (blarg) (unless you count our "date" with each other a last week...), TheBon is getting married, I think D is anti-dating right now, L is engaged, and so I really only have St M to focus my Jewish-mother instincts on. Pity her, I suppose.

Moving on. I finished knitting the left spock today - I just need to find buttons for it. I had trouble, I realised, because I changed the number of buttons and the gauge to a wonky number. S'all my fault. But, writing out the pattern should be much easier now. (I also cast on the right spock).

And, guess what?, today is Flash Your Stash day! Woot. It took me four photographs (I don't have a large surface to lay it all out on...), but I got most of it (who wants to see a pic of Electra's or Shawn's fleeces again, anyway??). Here we go. First, the lace and sock yarns:

The yarns I have no idea what I'm doing with...

The roving that is too beautiful for words...

And, the "projects" pile, some of which are actually cast on/ swatched:

I counted everything, and discovered to my own amazement (and joy!) that I have:

142 balls/ skeins/ cones of yarn
20 lbs of fiber (including fleeces)

Not too bad, eh? I saw worse numbers on Craftster. I admit that a month ago my stash was a terrifying creature, but I cut it in half... mwahaha. I also set up a stash management spreadsheet on Google documents. I'm hoping it'll help me keep track of everything - I put in the yarn, amount, and intended projects. And, below that, all the spinning fiber.

And, as a closing note: if you can catch the Deserts episode of Planet Earth, there's a bit on Guanaco. Really, really cool. I explained to Dad how cool they were, and how their undercoats were collected on cacti, fences, etc across Chile, etc.

An ode to silk

2007-03-31T23:57:00.000-07:00

Well, not really. I promised good blog content (well, content sans weeds) tonight, and poetry would be breaking that promise, wouldn't it? So, I think I'll just leave it with this:

“With time and patience the mulberry leaf becomes a silk gown.”
Chinese Proverb

Let's see. Today's activities included: slogging ahead on Mum's lace border (1/2 done!!), laundry, the left Spock (I'm stuck on the button band, both on the spock AND the pattern, blast it), more laundry, and I finally let myself cast on a sleeve for the peacock pullover:

I figured I'd earned it. I can't believe that I'm actually counting a sleeve as a reward (if you don't know of my hatred for knitting sleeves... lucky you). But this silk is amazing. I think that I've finally found the material it takes to make me want to to knit a sleeve. Or, at least, I have found that for me to want to knit a sleeve, I have to want to work with the material in any way, shape, or form.

Silk is yummy. Especially when it's cobalt.

Let's see, Dad and I rented Children of Men. Typically, Emm walked in after the first 15 mins (so we got to restart it). Thus, I made them pay very close attention to those first 10 minutes or so, since they set up the movie brilliantly. I have to say that I love the movie even more after a second viewing. The relationships are just wonderful, the story is moving (however impossible or contrived) and the acting is flawless. Both my father and brother were a little teary at the end, something I found interesting (alright, I was misty, too, and I'd seen it it before). Dad and I concured, Rolling Stone Magazine got it right, it is the modern Blade Runner.

So, that's it. Progress has been made (I challenge anyone to call 4 loads of laundry anything else), and TheBon's coming over tomorrow to dye napkins for her wedding. I need to check my email, spin for Miss Violacious (I finally found the right fiber!), and then go to bed. Shavuah Tov.

wow, more pictures of weeds

2007-03-30T23:22:00.000-07:00

“A flower falls, even though we love it; and a weed grows, even though we do not love it.” (Dogen)

My blogging skills are, like, the best, aren't they? I just psychically knew that all y'all out there are secretly hankering for more pictures of our weedy garden. (don't worry, rain is coming tonight, so I'll actually have interesting content tomorrow)

So, progress made today... We took this weedy patch of earth:

Oh, look, Emm's wacky again,

And, back to the weeds that I know you long for, we turned the plot into this:

Emmett's antics aside, we moved 5 very large pots, weeded like we needed to plant enough grain to support Eugene, and put down topsoil. We were so exhausted (all of us) that for a half hour afterwards we just sat on the steps and tried to regain our breath. After that (whilst the boys were moving said honking huge pots to the other side of the garden), I got up my backbone and decided to tackle the rose bushes.

"You are going to leave enough behind, aren't you?"

"Yes, Dad. You know that the more I prune -"

"The thicker they come back," he chorused with me. He still watched me like a hawk as I cut off entire branches (our rose bushes are flourishing and actually killing the surrounding flora) and deadheaded every dead flower in sight. Within 30 mins, I had managed to get them back into order:

The above shows the 2 intentionally planted rose bushes. Plus a cherry tree and a baby rose bush that, err, I don't think is supposed to be there. Can roses propagate on their own?? Aren't most rose breeds wonky about that?

I was horrified to find today, as I worked on the northern beds, that the passion flower had not just grown exponentially, it had seeded and those tendrils we thought came from the original plant were from 3 others!! Bugger. I can't believe what these plants have been up to. The artichoke has also seeded another one. It's tiny, and I stepped on it, but it's there. And don't get me started on the lilies and irises. They're like bunnies.

Ohwell. It's slowly getting under control. Everyone is exhausted, and I think that even Dad (although secretly) is relieved by the oncoming rain. I mean, seriously, we need a break.

And, I think that I shall now go and spin something... Or knit. Knitting is good. I got 3 rows done on the left spock today, while we were waiting in line at the yarn debris drop-off point. Impressive, huh?

IE friendly, finally!

2007-03-30T00:09:00.000-07:00

The blog's template is FINALLY IE friendly! I had to do some serious HTM/L editing (and chopping) - I don't know how half of the code got lost, but it works now. It doesn't look as good as on Firefox or Safari, but it works. It also takes a little longer to load...

But it WORKS!

oh, look!, more plants...

2007-03-29T22:49:00.000-07:00

I think the stress of the move is getting to my brother...

Right. Quick update:

I am very sore. My Dad and brother claim the same.
The bed of the truck is chock full of plant debris we'll be getting rid of tomorrow.
I hate dandelions. A LOT.
I have knit 2 rows on the left spock today, and doubt I'll manage more. I'm sorry this is taking so long, Ilsa, but the pattern'll be a couple days more...
I think this is lilac. Anyone? Yay or nay?
This, I have no idea.
Baby T's wraplan is finally not running any more. It only took 4 soapy washes and quite a few more rinses. The buttons don't look too out of place, either, thank goodness.
I want to go back to bed, and I've only been up for 2 hours (nap, nap was good).

That is all.