the quacking fiber addict

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.

Labels: charkha, frogging, le Tour de Fleece 2007, movie review, SKA

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...

Labels: felting, finished object, movie review

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.

Labels: designing, movie review

“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.

Labels: movie review, update

“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...

Labels: movie review

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:


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.

Labels: movie review, socks, The Move

“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...)

Labels: movie review

1. Never give Emmos a chance to listen to Blue Grass.
2. Never take a Jew to a Good Friday Service. Particularly when said Jew is a Classicist.
   
3. Never take 2 Classicists/ Costume Historians to a movie like 300
4. Never let said Classicists/ Costume Historians sit together, or next to an equally snarky/ sarcastic friend at said movie.
5. 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.

Labels: friends, movie review

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:

1. Why is tonight different from all other nights? Emm is actually eating Thai food!
2. 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...
   
3. 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.
4. 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.

Labels: Bad Jews, family, movie review, Pesach, The Move

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.

Labels: cast on, movie review

“If I do dream, would all my wealth would wake me! If I do wake, some planet strike me down, that I may slumber in eternal sleep!”
William Shakespeare

Let's see, I have three movie reviews for you. Plus too many pictures and too little sleep. Yippee, this is gonna be strange. First things first, I'll answer Tamara's questions:

1. Yep, the whole darn house (yet I still have a cardboard window). Bloody &^$#, this is insane, I tell you.
2. The whole family is expected to move. I say expected, because I retain some hope that I might actually finally get hired for one of the jobs I've applied for and get to stay in Eugene.
3. The family (Mum, Dad, Emmett and quite possibly I) are planning to move to Olympia, WA.
4. Mr Fishy will be mine until I am forced to give him up (i.e. I get taken abroad by the Peace Corps or join the French Foreign Legion... hey, is that still around?). Dad'll definitely take him, since he's the one who feeds him for me when I'm away, anyway.

Next, per Laural's question about The Last Mimzy. Okay, bear in mind that I am very critical of movies. I wasn't impressed, nor was I enthralled. Emmos seemed to enjoy it, but agreed with me that the editing was atrocious (very choppy and a lot of things we left unexplained), the plot thin, the research nonexistant about the Pacific Northwest, and some of the acting weak (other than, of course, Rainn Wilson who saved many a scene). It was also a bit trite. It would be alright for children, I suppose. It wasn't bad, just mediocre. If you want something light and fluffy, it's a good movie to rent. That said, don't spend $8+ on an adult ticket to see it.

I know, I'm cruel.

Anyway. After that, Emmos and I went to Barnes & Noble to try and get a copy of Cast Off. Nada. Apparently they're still in transit. A copy has been reserved for me. We spent a good hour laughing ourselves silly over some of the more esoteric knitting books released recently. We were finally kicked out (well, nearly) and went home (well, Emmos').

After getting into sleep over mode, we put on The Black Dahlia. After less than half an hour, I made Emmos change it to An Inconvenient Truth. It was that bad. If it had been in B&W I might have forgiven the flagrantly film noir style of story-telling (protagonist narration, for G-d's sake), melodrama, character angst, and just plain campy-ness (because then it would have actually been a film noir, and really you can't get away with certain facial expressions in colour). Several things were left unexplained (read above comments on bad editing), and the fight scenes were so obviously choreographed that I actually wondered if the cast was going to suddenly break into song and dance a la Gangs of New York.

I was very disappointed, since I am a hardcore fan of nearly every actor in the movie, but it was bad. It also didn't "grab" you the way a good movie should. Paying attention to a film shouldn't be difficult, I'm sorry. But, since I am not a professional film critic, I doubt you want my full (read: lengthy and unflattering) opinion.

Back to An Inconvenient Truth. I liked it. Some of it was pointedly manipulative, but most of it was interesting, to the point, and caught you within the first five minutes. Emmos loved the graphs. I liked the pictures (I'm pathetic, I know) of the glaciers and suchlike. But, the point was made whether or not you like/ dislike Gore, dis/agree with him, despise him, or have issues with his home in --- (I have no idea where he lives, alright?).

After the 3 movies (well, 2.15 movies, technically) Emmos and I went to bed well after 1 am. Emmos then woke me at 10 am (hrrmph) and we went to get milk. She got me to try Cocoa Puffs (*shudder* oh, the sugar!) for breakfast. Then we found out that Emmos' plan for the day was shot, for various reasons. I ended up staying over for a bit and helped with the garden. We turned weeds like this:









Once it started to get cloudy and very windy, we gave up for the day. Well, I had given up some time before since my cramps had returned and I was feeling decidedly peaky. But, much was achieved, and Emmos was pleased. We then, on the way to my home, stopped at a furniture store and found a chair for Emmos to refinish and reupholster. We stopped at the nearby animal rescue store where I found two knitting magazines (from 1952 and 1961). I remembered that there was a slim chance that Creative Hands would be open (twice I had gotten there after closing, hrmph, but 10 minutes before the closing time), so we decided to try them out. On the way, Emmos showed me the warehouse her grandfather had owned and nearly burnt down:


We annoyed the young men working in the Xtreme Sports store inside, but eh. After wandering around inside (just because) we went on our way. And, wonder of wonders!, the shop was open:


St M and I had tried on Monday, and Emmos and I had tried last night before the movie. Third time's the charm, I guess. The selection is interesting. They have some spinning and knitting supplies (more felting than anything), but since it's a local shop and they carry locally produced products I got a single batt of rose coloured wool (does that count? it shouldn't, it's only 2 oz). It's so pretty. After that we hit "that Greek place" in 5th street for an extremely late lunch, but wow were they yummy. Great gyros.

And the last stop, before I got to collapse at home, was Econo Sales fabrics so we could find fabric for Emmos to put on the chair tonight. After an hour of looking (Emmos can be so damn picky I tell you), I finally found a great satin damask in pale sage. We got a yard, a new foam cushion cut, and lining. Emmos was already planning to get her Mum's staple gun on the way home to fix the seat up tonight. I can't wait to see it, I think I'll like the chair a bit more, then (I didn't like the form, I admit it).

Once I finally got home, I collapsed and napped for a bit. After dinner, I cast on for the reformed version of the Spox. I'm using my Panda Wool I got from Purlescence Yarns. No picture, sorry, since I want to publish this one. And that's everything. Now I need to check my email, I am so woefully behind.

Labels: cast on, friends, movie review, socks