Chuck Norris

I had a dream that I met Chuck Norris. Now, don't get me wrong, I think he's a pretty cool guy all in all but I don't have any kind of obsession with him. But, I met him, talked a little bit and I asked him if he had seen all the Chuck Norris stuff on the internet and he hadn't. So I showed him. He laughed at it.

		If you have five dollars and Chuck Norris has five dollars, Chuck Norris has more money than you.
		There is no 'ctrl' button on Chuck Norris's computer. Chuck Norris is always in control.
		Apple pays Chuck Norris 99 cents every time he listens to a song.
		Chuck Norris can sneeze with his eyes open.
		Chuck Norris can eat just one Lay's potato chip.
		Chuck Norris is suing Myspace for taking the name of what he calls everything around you.
		Chuck Norris destroyed the periodic table, because he only recognizes the element of surprise.
		Chuck Norris can kill two stones with one bird. From Chuck Norris Facts

The weekend

The weekend is nearly here and I am psyched. Well, not really. But it shouldn't be a bad weekend. I want to do some cooking and cleaning and studying and playing with the boys.

To do

The to-do lists in my head are always a mile long. (maybe that's why I get so many headaches, my brain is full hmmmmmm) I'm feeling spring in the air already even though it's still the same cold outside so gardening is starting to feel like something I want to do. The house I'm living in now was neglected for 10 years so the yard is way overgrown. I have a lot of work just to clean it up and trim things. But I want a garden. The owners many years ago had a fabulous garden (I'm told) and so I should be able to at least manage a mediocre garden. Maybe a few flowers around the house but not too much. There is no grass to speak of but you never know what may come up if you clear out a few things. I'm looking forward to doing my own thing and making my own decisions about what to plant. Weeding is my weak spot and so I'm trying to figure out a way to minimize this. I can't wait to order seeds. Fun times. Do you have a garden?

I was prepared to be happy

I left the house in great anticipation this morning. Revving the engine and ready to go in the -1F temps. Yeah, today it would happen. I drove down 4th avenue to pick up the kids and take them to school. Back to the school and dropping them off. Then the action begins. I pull out of the turnaround and roar down 2nd. The light is green and I turn left down Broadway. The light is green again and I turn down 1st. Two blocks later the light is green again and I turn on Park Ave. Cruising to Grand ave I turn again and head past the other school. Once again the light is green and I'm able to go all out on the road to work. Humming to myself, happy thoughts in my mind when I get near Walmart. The green light beckons me and I wave merrily as I pass it by. As I pass McDonalds I wink at the green light there. A mile later, there it is, the last stop light I have to pass on my morning journey. I've almost made it, I've almost conquered the drive. This stoplight is fairly new and was needed. As I approach, I smile confidently, knowing that life is good, life is correct and today is my day. I look up and there it is, a red light. I have to stop as even the guy in front of me is stopping and not deciding to run it. This is my life.

Philosophical musings

Sitting in drawing class the other day I started thinking about how there is a dichotomy (not sure if that's the right word) in how people perceive their wanting to belong to a group and wanting to be an individual. I know how powerful it can be to want to be part of a group. You would think that would be mutually exclusive from wanting to be unique, an individual. Art majors tend to want to at least look unique and be unique in other ways. But yet they might also want to be part of the "art crowd". I always think of myself as pretty unique and proud of it most of the time but at the same time I feel these pangs of not belonging to anything. Watching an old episode of Friends last night, Monica was telling Ross how his fiancee had been planning and dreaming of the perfect wedding since she was five. This sort of standard woman thing has never applied to me. I've never dreamed of perfect weddings or a certain number of children and I never have long conversations about makeup or hair or clothes so when I see things like this I feel like since I don't do these things I don't belong to the "standard woman" group. Some days it makes me wonder why I don't like these things and why I'm not "right". Other days I'm glad I'm not concerned with such things. You can spend a lot of money for something that doesn't give much satisfaction. It's hard to ignore the pull of outside things and ideas about how other people think you should behave. I guess I'm just trying to find myself.

The wonder fiber

No, my friends, I'm not talking about wool here. I'm talking about, you guessed it, oatmeal! I made lovely oatmeal bread over the weekend and it was goooooood. You don't just throw in the oatmeal willy-nilly-soupy-spilly. It's oatmeal with hot milk and brown sugar that you could eat just like that. And then, you make bread out of it. It's so moist and it isn't crumbly and it just tastes wonderful. I'm gonna have to get me one of those new-fangled toaster things to toast it up next time.

Pleased

The professor told me my drawing was decent and I was happy with that. He had some suggestions too. There were quite a few drawings that I felt were better than mine and a few that were worse so I'm pretty happy with being in the middle. One woman used charcoal for her's and it made it very dramatic and I loved how the hair on her's came out. It really had nice texture and color so maybe I'll try something with charcoal soon.

For fun

What Year Do You Belong In?

You Belong in 1984

Wild, over the top, and just a little bit cheesy. You're colorful at night - and successful during the day.

What Year Do You Belong In?

I got this from my friend Kristin.

Finished

I finished my self portrait for class. I don't like it completely but I don't know yet how to fix it not looking quite right. I look really stiff. My eyes might be a little big even though I tried to make them smaller last night. I don't know. I guess that's why I'm taking a class. To learn these things.

Drawing class

Class last night was great. We split up into pairs and we had to draw half person's face while they drew half your face. So we'd take turns drawing on the same paper. I have to admit, we looked pretty decent. She did a great job on the flowers that were on my sweater and I thought I did her eye really well. It's fun and the time goes fast. Now I remember why I like art classes. The feeling I have after class is well worth the time and money put into it. It makes me feel good and I always come out of class all bouncy.

On lack of motivation

It happens quite often. Fortunately I worked a lot yesterday. Tomorrow is another day.

Project overload

In addition to the shawl and socks and blanket that I have been working on, I now have a scarf, a hat and some new spinning going. When will this crazy merry-go-round existence end?

The Great Cat Chase of Ought Nine

I should have known. The day hadn't started out well anyway. I got to bed kind of late and then woke up in the middle of the night with a migraine then later woke up with bad stomach that kept me awake for 45 minutes. So when the alarm went off at 5:30 AM I wasn't too inclined to get up. But it was necessary. Two of my cats were scheduled to go to the vet to get fixed and that meant I had to catch them. You see, these cats were rescued and are still pretty wild. Picking them up is the tricky part. Once you are holding them, they calm down. Lately they've been hiding inside the couch just under the springs and so it's difficult to reach them. When I got up I went to the back porch and one of the cats was back there so I shut that door to trap him in the there. A few minutes later the other one came out from under the couch and I managed to chase him into the bathroom where I shut the door. I breathed a sigh of relief as I had imagined that to be the worst part of catching them.

First I tackled Rena. I managed to kind of trap him in a corner, and, wearing welding gloves, I picked him up spitting and clawing and biting and dumped him quickly into the cat carrier and quickly shut the door. Ah, life is good. One down, one to go. I took a break and sat and drank some coffee and watched the news. I'd catch the other cat, take a shower and be on my way.

I prepared myself with gloves and carefully going into the bathroom and shutting the door behind me. Shawn was there, hiding behind the toilet. I advanced and heard the hissing and as I put my hand close, the claws came out. He batted my fingers again and again. I was chasing him back and forth and so I tried to get him in a corner but it was no go. Then he jumped in the bathtub looking for a way out and I had him. I picked him up, holding him with both hands and I realized that I had forgotten my 3rd hand so I could get the door open again. So carefully with one gloved finger I got the doorknob turned without letting go the cat.

I went into the back porch and again the third hand would have been handy for I needed to pull that door shut behind me. I moved it as far as I could and thought 'oh, I just have to put him in the carrier so he shouldn't get away' Famous last words. Since he was still biting, I didn't want to hold him next to my body, I put him down with a hand on him to hold him while I opened the cat carrier. Oops, he got a grip on the carpet and he was struggling and got loose. As he ran around me to the open door I spun around, getting rug burns on the tops of my feet and my knee and he was gone. Back under the couch and I knew he wasn't coming out for any reason.
I cried. Since I live alone, there was no one to help me, no one that could easily come over and help that time of the morning and I had to go pick up my kids for school and get to work.

I picked myself up and got in the shower and got ready and as I got dressed I decided I had had it. The cat was coming out. I took all the cushions off the couch, tipped it on it's side and shook it and banged on it. One cat came out but it wasn't the right one. I looked inside the ripped backing and saw little cat eyes staring out at me. That's it! I grabbed my scissors and quickly snipped away the whole bottom backing of the couch. (the couch was used and free when I got it so that didn't bother me) And there he was, lurking. I grabbed him and went to the back porch, pulled the door shut with my toes and making sure he didn't get too close to floor, I kneeled down to open the cat carrier. My gloves made my fingers to clumsy to open it so I had to slip off the glove. Success! He had calmed down a bit from me holding him closer to my body and he went right in the carrier. I got the couch back in order and made it to work on time. Too much excitement in my life.

Almost

Almost forgot to blog! ;)

Last night

Last night I couldn't decide whether to try a drawing class or not. I'm glad I went. The class starts at 6 PM twice a week and although I have my doubts about my motivation I'm sure I won't regret it when I'm actually there. He said the supplies won't cost more than $30 so this will be by far the cheapest class I am taking. The fee refund I will get will nearly pay the tuition for the class so that's good as well. My younger son is interested in art so I'm looking forward to learning some things that I can share with him.

New semester

Ah, the smell of new textbooks, the empty pockets after you buy them, the new knowledge being crammed into your head. The new semester of college has started again and I'm happy. I love going to school and wish I could full time. Hopefully in a couple months I won't be all run down worrying about classes. Only two years of half time classes til I finish my degree.

Winter wonderland

It snowed Friday night. Really snowed. Cold and windy and blizzardy. Yes, I just made up that word. A good night to stay in and keep warm. The next day was beautiful. This is my back yard. Looks like a jungle out there.

The scone saga

Alternate title: Why you should follow instructions and why you shouldn't stir the dough so much.

I received a nice chocolate chip scone mix for Christmas so last night I decided to bake it because I wanted to eat it. So far, so good.
Since I have made scones from scratch many times before, I perused the instructions noting how much heavy cream to add and the oven temp needed. I turned on the oven, got out a nice bowl, dumping the mix into the bowl. I then carefully measured out the cup of half-n-half that the recipe called for. Wait, what? Yes, it called for heavy cream but all I could find at the store was half-n-half. When you make scones or biscuits (or any quick bread), you add the liquid all at once to the dry ingredients. I did so, then stirring gently I realized I was making soup and it was way too runny. You want the bread to actually stick together. I looked again at the recipe, actually reading the instructions. Ah ha, you are supposed to add 3/4 cup and stir and then add the rest if needed. Oh well, I'll just a little flour. And stir some more. Add some more flour. And stir some more. Just a little more flour for the right consistency. Stir some more. The further instructions say to flatten the dough and cut into wedges but I'm too lazy and decide to just make them drop scones. I bake them for the required length of time then take them out of the oven. Ah, they look good, smell good. I prepare a nice cup of tea and bring a couple scones to eat with my tea. I take a bite and remember why you are only supposed to stir them until moistened. My scones are like chewing on bagels. Great. Chocolate chip bagels.
I need a nap.

How can it change so quickly

I've spent this week feeling at loose ends and not having enough to occupy my time and I just realized that next week I start classes again and that means I will go back to wondering why I never have enough time to do everything. Is there no in between? Tomorrow I will have to buy books for class and get annoyed once again at how expensive the stupid things are. They better be interesting to read.

The furnace

My new little house has a total of 3 heaters. Ok, so far so good. It's the coldest time of the year and I have only 2 of them lit and I turn them down during the day when I'm gone. (Don't worry, the cats have fur coats to keep them warm) The problem is that one of them, if I turn it down too far, goes off. Then I have to light it in the evenings. Besides the fact that I'm all handy around the house knowing how to light pilot lights, it's annoying. Because even though I follow all the instructions and get it lit correctly, as soon as I turn up the thermostat, it goes on, then goes off. Then I have to light it again. Usually the 3rd time is the charm. Although I am all handy, that handiness doesn't extend to knowing what is wrong with the furnace or how to fix it. If I leave it up high, then it doesn't go off but that defeats the turning down the furnace when I'm gone to save money principle. Ah well, we'll see what happens. Spring is coming in 3 or 4 months, isn't it?

Purple Love Hat

Here is a hat I designed last summer. I don't have a picture as I gave it away but I'll try and get another one made real quick. Enjoy and let me know if there are any problems!

Purple Love Hat

Knit Picks, Swish Superwash, Bordeaux, 1 skein, 110 yards
Size 10 (6 mm) double pointed needles (5)

CO 80 stitches
Separate stitches with 20 stitches on each of 4 needles

Rib Pattern

Knitting in the round

1^st row (right side): *k3, p1, k3, p3: rep from * to end.

2^nd row: As 1^st row

3^rd row: As 1^st row

4^th row: Purl

Repeat these 4 rows one time

Knit 2 rounds

Lace panel
(worked over 20 stitches)

1^st row(right side): p2, k9, yo,k1,yo,k3, sl 1, k2tog, psso, p2, k to end of round

2^nd and every alternate row: Knit

3^rd row: p2, k10, yo, k1, yo, k2, sl 1, k2tog, psso, p2, k to end of round

5^th row: p2, k3tog, k4, yo, k1, yo, k3, (yo, k1) twice, sl 1, k2tog, psso, p2, k to end of round

7^th row: p2, k3tog,k3, yo, k1, yo, k9, p2, k to end of round

9^th row: p2, k3 tog, k2, yo, k1, yo k10, p2, k to end of round

11^th row: p2, k3tog, (k1, yo) twice, k3 yo, k1, yo, k4, sl 1, k2tog, psso, p2, k to end of round

12^th row: Knit

Repeat these 12 rows once.

Decreasing
(k7, k2tog) around
knit
(k6, k2tog) around
knit
(k5, k2tog) around
knit
(k4, k2tog) around
knit
(k3, k2tog) around
knit
(k2, k2tog) around
knit
(k1, k2tog) around
knit
k2tog around

9 stitches left

Break yarn and thread tail through remaining stitches.
Pull tight and weave in ends.

Crazy psycho killer cats

The cats. Oh, where to begin. The cats are in my house. I received them from coworkers who had rescued them. That was oh so nice. But, the cats aren't exactly super people-friendly. In fact they still hiss at me when I start to get close and then run away if they can. I've held them all a few times but they are still hissy. They eat really well though, I feel like I'm trying to fill up the bottomless well of cat hunger. Not only do I have these three cats in my house, there are two outside that have a habit of jumping up to sit in the window on the outside. So I've been feeding them a little. They seem to be tamer than the ones I have inside. I'm sure crazy-cat-lady-dom is not far away.

That's it!

The sofa goes on the south side of the living room. I feel all cozy and comfortable in my new house. There was a brief moment of 'uh-oh' when one morning there was no hot water in the tub and it didn't drain either. But it has been rectified.
I've finished the Noro scarf and now just have to block it. A nice gift for someone.
I got a B+ in my difficult Geomorphology class. I'm very very very pleased with that.

And since I'm in a Christmassy sort of mood.....

One month since the last meeting.

And progress has been made. I have a sofa. It's a little broken down and doghaired but it's not bad at all. I'm still deciding exactly where to put it.
I have gotten the Noro for the scarf I was making. Progress is being made.
The 3 cats. You mean the psycho-killer-cats? The finger-chomping-killer cats? They've so far bit everyone that has tried to hold them. Including my mom who has a swelled up sore hand now from it. My finger swelled a little from the bite but not alarmingly so. It's going to take a long time to get the wild out of them I'm afraid.
Babette blanket is still in progress. I have finals next week and then hopefully I can work more on that.
I'm 3/4 of the way through two pillows made with my handspun. I'm very pleased with how they are looking.
I've finished 2 pair baby socks.
I knit a very tiny annoying-to-knit mitten but it looks good.
I knit two tiny hats for a gift.
And I started another pair of socks.
Seems like I knit more if I keep track of it.

I actually won something!

From IdealBite!
I'm excited!

I'm pathetic

I had to run an errand. So far so good. On the way back I stop to buy a Fuze. (delicious, by the way, I love them) So far, but not so good. I decided to buy some Christmas candy to share with the office, ok, not bad, sharing is good. But then in hit me. I wanted something else. Something lovely and delicious. Oh my, visions of Ben & Jerry's. Oh yum! But in my defense, at least I only bought the tine 3.6 oz one. That's just enough in my opinion.

She said I was tagged...

This one's easy, bold the books you’ve read, italicize the ones you want to read, leave the ones blank that you have no interest in.

1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban (Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye(J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25. Life of Pi
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie (Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner(Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59. The Handmaid’s Tale (Margaret Atwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64 - Interview With the Vampire
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91.The Skin of the Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

I better get to reading.

Going along

Let this meeting now come to order. Any old business?
Socks from Knit Socks book. Completed and saved for Christmas gift, maybe.
Babette blanket, still working on it. It's looking good and will be nice if I ever get a couch.
The stole is where it was last time I mentioned it.
Road scarf, I'm still waiting to go to a real yarn store to get more Noro.
I've finished plying the wool and I've found a pattern to make a pillow cover so I think that will work nicely.
OK then, any new business?
I moved, more on that later.
I now have 3 kittens, more on that later.
I've knitted one pair of baby socks and am working another pair. No, I'm not pregnant.
I've also been spinning a bit.

I motion we adjourn.

I like it

What am I doing?

I ask myself that a lot. With knitting and spinning I do know what I'm working on though. Since the advent of the lovely bus ride to work, I have more time to knit. I'm working on a pair of socks from the Knit Socks book. (wonderful book, I recommend it) Those were getting time consuming and so in a moment of weakness I started the Babette blanket. But it won't be in so many colors and will be crocheted in Red Heart soft. The first big square is almost finished and I've decided to seam it as I go. I know if I get to the end and all those little squares have to be put together, I won't do it. I'm still working on the stole and am averse to even picking it up lately. It's beautiful, so I want to finish it but it's annoying to do. Perhaps I need to do lace with different needles or something. You know, I've been wanting to buy some Addi needles. (it just occurred to me that I've put none of these projects on Ravelry, well, the stole but nothing else) I also started a Road Scarf with Noro but I only had one skein so I'll have to wait on that until I get some more. It's beautiful.
I'm spinning some roving from Freckle Face Fibers and the wool is great but I'm not liking my plying. The green and brown I don't like how I've put them together. But it might look good as a hat. We'll see. I'm anxious to start on some other wools I've bought and so now I see why people have more than one wheel.

I'm being really lazy here.

I could survive for 60 seconds chained to a bunk bed with a velociraptor

Created by Bunk Beds Pedia

I love cats

I need to get one.

Green

You Are Teal Green

You are a one of a kind, original person. There's no one even close to being like you. Expressive and creative, you have a knack for making the impossible possible. While you are a bit offbeat, you don't scare people away with your quirks. Your warm personality nicely counteracts and strange habits you may have.

What Color Green Are You?

I don't know, I just like it

Inspiration

Where do you look for creative inspiration? I look for blogs with different images than I'm used to, quotes, funny things. In a word, 'delightful'. That's the word I use when I see something I really like. I don't use it often so it definitely means something to me. One of my favorite new sites is FFFOUND!. Tons of pictures get posted daily and it makes me look at the world differently. I like that. Where do you look for inspiration?

My craft evolution, part 3

I know you've been waiting with bated breath for this. Well, maybe just waiting.

In college I worked a year and a half at an accounting firm. I was your basic go-fer, filing, copying, filing some more, answering the phone a little. I made a whopping $4 an hour. One of the accountants was pregnant and would work on a counted cross-stitch during her lunch hour. It was your basic baby scene with pastel colors and rattles and cute sayings. But I liked how everything looked just so. And hey! I can count. So off I went to Wal-Mart to look at crafts. You could buy little cross-stitch kits with everything you needed for a little Christmas ornament or whatever. I also ended up doing a couple needlepoint kits. Those were nice too. I liked the exactness of the craft, as long as you counted correctly (count twice, stitch once) everything came out right. So started my love affair with cross-stitch. I bought a lot of pamphlets, subscribed to magazines and stitched away happily, making ever bigger and bigger projects. But do you think that's all I was doing? There's more.

More finishing

I finished the dishcloth (terribly difficult, I know) and I finished my own hat design and got it knitted up. I'm rather proud of it. I think I have someone test knitting it for me. Hopefully a couple someones. I'm afraid designing knitting is addictive. After the hat, that left me with only 2 things I was working on. Masonic lodge socks and the stole. So one night this week I was perusing a knitting stitches book again and POW. I had to start another hat. I think this one will be simpler but I'm using my handspun so you know it will be pretty. I think as my knitting skills improve, my designs will get more complicated. I just envision that someone will follow my path from beginning knitter to more accomplished knitter and have designs to try along the way.
I'm spinning some beautiful black merino wool top. It's 8 ounces worth, the most I've bought at one time. It's Louet and I bought it at Purls of Wisdom. Forgive me if I'm repeating myself, I'm too lazy to go back and look at my previous posts. This will be Masonic Lodge socks too I'm thinking. Hopefully 2 pair.
I also saw this tutorial and I really love the yarn colors. I need to take a class or something on combining colors. Other people can think of combinations I would never dream of.
Have a great weekend!

Finished

I finished the scarf and it looks beautiful. I'm going to try and bring some things I've finished next week for a photo shoot as she has a digital camera and I don't. Now to get rid of some more of the WIPs. You know I have some other things on my mind to start already. Some socks from my new sock book and finish spinning a couple things.
The good news is at the fiber festival I attended last weekend, I met a fiber farm person and she hosts the fiber guild. So I'm afraid I'll have to go. She seems to be a down to earth person and I think I'll enjoy it. A solid block of time to work on something (or 2 or 3 somethings) would be great.
Have a great weekend!

Knitting overload

I had two knitting projects going for a long time. Just the socks and the stole. Well, now, I have 5 things going. Still the socks and stole. The lovely Malabrigo is becoming a scarf rather quickly. It's wonderful to knit with and I just chose a stitch pattern from one of the Harmony guides, double basket weave, and it looks beautiful. I got the book through interlibrary loan at the college here where I work. Interlibrary loan is great! Then I can decide whether I really like a book before I buy it. This scarf will be put in the gift stash to be used when needed. Unfortunately I never have enough in the gift stash when Christmas comes around but I'm always trying.
I started teaching a friend to knit a dishcloth and of course I started my own to demonstrate. So that will be done quickly I think.
I also have my knit hat pattern I'm working on. I'm converting a flat pattern to be worked in the round and it's more difficult (for me) than I thought. I had 8 rows done on the brim but I'm going to have to pull it out and rework it. Weird stuff happens. But I'm very please with the yarn and I'll eventually be posting the pattern here.
Have a great day!

My craft evolution, part 2

I don't remember doing many crafts in high school. Such a social butterfly I was (ha!). I was a "brain" so of course I studied and did homework.
But in college I kind of got into a clothes refashioning kick. I'd look through catalogs and magazines and see what I liked then try to make something similar or use some of the ideas. I ended up with bermuda shorts (they were cool back then) sewn inside out and cheap shoes with sequins or beads sewn on. I even had some blue jeans that I bleached half of them and wore them that way. I dyed a few things but didn't do a very good job at it.
My second year of college I was working for an accounting firm and one of the women there was pregnant and working on a counted cross-stitch. There was the danger......

My craft evolution, part 1

I'm planning this to be the story of how I got into doing crafts starting with when I was a wee tot until now. I'm hoping you will find it interesting as well as helping me to understand myself a little better. Feel free to comment!

My first memories of any kind of craft were when I was about 5 or 6 years old. My grandma showing me how to do embroidery. She or my mom bought a little kit that was preprinted and I embroidered the design. I may have done more than one. That is all I remember until I hit about 13 years old. I spent one summer every day at my aunt's house and I had a latch hook kit of flowers that I finished that summer. I really enjoyed it and did several others in the years following.

4th of July

I spent the weekend in Durango at my brother-in-law's house. My boys had a great time playing x-box games and sitting in the hot tub and watching fireworks and playing with the dogs. They always hate to leave. I got going on the 2nd Masonic Lodge sock but didn't work on it too much. I did start some spinning of the lovely black merino wool I got in Denver about a month ago. I have 8 ounces and I'm going to try and get 2 pairs of socks out of it. That was kind of nice to just sit and spin. I think I ate too much.
I also got to go to Yarn, a nice store in Durango. I bought some of the much talked about Malabrigo and some Noro. Silly me, I hadn't brought any knitting needles other than the size 2 dpns for the socks. So all I could was fondle the yarn. Maybe tonight I'll play with it. Not sure what I can make with just one skein apiece but I'll try a hat or something.

Tater tots on parade

Sometimes when I think of a funny combination of words, I set up a blog post with that title and wait for inspiration of what to say. It's been a couple days since I put this one up and when I looked this morning it made me laugh again.
What's happening on the knitting front? No, I'm not knitting the front of anything. I am knitting Quelle Erqsome's lovely Masonic Lodge socks. I've actually managed to memorize the pattern. The heel flap gave me a bit of a problem when I first started it but it was due to my inability to read a pattern, nothing wrong with the pattern. Thinking inversely doesn't work too well with me. I think for the second sock I'll actually write out what I need to do right there. I'm using some yarn I got from a thrift store sweater I took apart. The sweater was pretty boring but I got about 5 pairs of socks worth of yarn from it. The sweater only cost me about $2.
I'm also knitting the lovely Sea and Shells Stole by Dee Bamford. It looks great but is taking forever to knit. I'm using Jaeggerspun laceweight yarn and it's wonderful. There are 34 repeats of 12 rows and I've done 8 repeats so don't expect me to be finishing this anytime soon.
My other little project has been to design a hat. I've done some swatches and now I've ordered the yarn and needles I want to use so keep an eye here for that pattern in the near future. It's my first try at designing something and I've enjoyed the process a lot.
I've finished spinning a beautiful batt from Butterflygirl designs. It was a short staple length and slippery so I had a hard time and had to pay attention or it would just slip away from me. The color was called Tequila Sunrise and it really did look like the drink. I'm not sure what I want to do with it yet. I might just leave it as a single for now.
Sorry I have no pictures. I haven't managed to win a camera yet from Pioneer Woman. If everyone else would quit entering her contests, maybe I'd have a better chance. Grin.
Have a great day!

Random Brain Frogs

• I now am the proud owner of a Bissell Powerforce Turbo. This sounds very much like a Power Ranger. Of course it's red, like the strongest Power Ranger. My favorite Power Ranger group is Mystic Force. They have the coolest song.
• I just did a superhero quiz and came out as Superman. Hmmmm
• I have no clue how much a tarp to cover a pickup bed would cost.
  

Extreme knitting

At least it looks warm.

By the numbers

I've now watched Stranger Than Fiction twice. I kind of noticed the counting. I realized that I myself count a lot of things. Some things are normal. You have to count to knit or crochet or counted cross stitch. But I count other things as well. Stairs sometimes, seconds to leave conditioner on my hair, things like that. It makes me wonder if that is the reason I like the crafts that I do. There is counting involved. Hmmmm

P.S. The movie was really good, by the way. I enjoyed it.

ETA: I count clothespins as well.

Toes

My toes are evidently growing longer. I've hit one big toe or the other about 3 times in the last week. This last weekend I trimmed the nails short and put on new nail polish. All pretty and nice. This morning I hit the right one, broke the nail back pretty far and there is actually blood. Nice, real nice.

YES/NO

YES/NO GAME RULES ARE AS FOLLOWS:

You can only say yes or no. You are NOT ALLOWED to explain ANYTHING unless someone messages you and asks!

Over 18? Yes
Danced in front of your mirror naked? Yes
Ever told a lie? Yes
Been arrested? No
Kissed a picture? Yes
Fallen asleep at work/school? No
Held an actual snake? Yes
Have YOU Ever run a red light? Yes
Ever drink and drive? Yes
Been suspended from school? No
Ever been fired from a job? No
Totaled a car/motorbike in an accident? No
Sang karaoke? Yes
Done something you told yourself you wouldn't? Yes
Laughed until something you were drinking came out your nose? No
Ever laughed until you wet yourself? No
Caught a snowflake on your tongue? Yes
Kissed in the rain? Yes
Sang in the shower? Yes
Sat on a rooftop? Yes
Thought about your past with regret? Yes
Been pushed in the pool with your clothes on? Yes
Shaved your head? No
Blacked out from drinking? No
Had a gym membership? No
Been in a band? No
Shot a gun? Yes
Liked someone with nobody else knowing about it? Yes
Played strip poker? No
Been to a strip joint? Yes
Donated Blood? Yes
Liked someone you shouldn't? Yes
Have a tattoo? No
Have or had any piercings besides ears? No
Made out with a complete stranger? Yes
Caught someone cheating on you? No
Skinny dipped? No
Regret any of your ex's? No
Been to a rodeo? Yes
Been to a NASCAR race? No
Been in Love? Yes

It's Friday in blogland

Random Friday (I make up my own titles, can't you tell?)

Burritos at the convenience store across the street are all buy one get one free today. Which is good because suddenly they are smaller than they used to be. A sad state of affairs to be sure. (They are actually handmade and not prepackaged so the dreaded convenience-store-burrito-blues do not strike with these. I like them)

Sweet Child o Mine. nuff said

Frosted cherry poptarts are delish this time of day. (looks like I better get to eating)

I suddenly have ideas and thoughts bouncing around in my head, socks to knit, fiber to spin, and sewing. I actually want to sew. I'm sure that once I get going, that notion(ha ha) will fly away as soon as I sew something crappy. The truth is it annoys me to sew badly but the only way to fix that is to sew more which I don't want to do because I sew badly. But a sock bag wouldn't be too difficult now, would it?

Happiness is a warm puppy.

The girl that works up in a different office looks enough like my sister in law to be sisters. I should ask if they are related. I really should.

Updates

I've been reading past entries and I've left you hanging on several things so let me try and address them.
Monkey socks are finished. Gifted to dad since they came out huge.
Icelandic wool spinning is finished and plied. Destined to become a hat. Large dpn's purchased for just such a thing. And the hat is almost finished now. Veddy quick. It will satisfy your longings for an FO

I went to a lovely shop in Parker called Purls of Wisdom where I bought the giant dpns and a sock knitting book and some black merino fiber to spin spin spin. I love it. My first LYS shopping experience.

My life is trying to get back on track after recent and not so recent traumatic events that I won't go into here. Life is trying.

Just so you know

I'm working on a pair of socks from my handspun. It's superwash merino spindle spun, wheel plied and the color is amaryllis. Very nice. I thought I had spun it bulkier but it's working well for the socks. The pattern is very easy and it's going quickly. I'm using #2 bamboo dpns. I have one more repeat on the foot and then it's the toe and they are done. Wool socks for summer!

Meme

Is it my imagination or that just sounds like me-me? All about me.

Accent: I think I have no accent, but, I've been told I have a very slight kind of Missouri accent. That's where my dad grew up. I think of it more as a slight redneck accent.

Breakfast or no breakfast: Food is veddy good.

Chore I don’t care for: Matching up socks.

Dog or Cat: cat

Essential Electronics: computer and a good stereo

Favorite Cologne: soap

Gold or Silver: silver or white gold.

Handbag I carry most often: It's a little over the shoulder backpack. My shoes and a book and some knitting will fit but the bag isn't big enough that I'm tempted to put too much in there.

Insomnia: I used to have that problem, but hopefully some things have been resolved.

Job Title: Accounts payable, budget, testing supervisor, other duties as required....

Kids: 2 boys

Living Arrangements: 2 bedroom house in town

Most Admirable Trait: My empathy and smarts.

Naughtiest Childhood Behavior: I really can't think of anything, how scary is that?

Overnight hospital stays: When I was 5 or so I was in the hospital for bronchitis and pnuemonia for 3 days in an oxygen tent. Since then I've just been in for 2 c-sections.

Phobias:Spiders and enclosed spaces. Spiders make me squeak when I see them and I just feel trapped in enclosed spaces, even if it's just a crowd of people enclosing me.

Quote: I'm not normally like this.

Reason to smile:my kids

Siblings: a sister

Time I wake up: By 5:30 most days, a little later on the weekends. I'm not a sleeping in person.

Unusual Talent or Skill: My thumbs are double jointed.

Vegetable I Refuse to Eat: cooked carrots, ugh

Worst Habit: procrastination

X-rays: Just my wrist when I broke it

Yummy Stuff: comfort food, mostly potatoes

Zoo Animal I Like Most: the lions, raaaarggg

Entertaining myself

Why, you ask, why? Why do I not post forever and then do 3 posts in one day? That's just how my mind works.
I have a book meme. "Borrowed" from mattress police

"1. Pick up the nearest book ( of at least 123 pages).
2. Open the book to page 123.
3. Find the fifth sentence.
4. Post the next three sentences.
5. Tag five people & post a comment here once you post it to your blog, so I can come see.

The purpose of this meme is, in other words, to propagate complete gibberish across the Internet. I cannot express to you how thankful I am that someone has finally taken on that task."

The Lord Mayor now produced a further 1,000 for the fund. In recognition Scott promised to make Cardiff the Terra Nova's first port of call on his return. The Cardiff Chamber of Commerce gave a farewell banquet for the officers in wood-panelled rooms of the Royal Hotel.


I'm only tagging three bloggers because they are the only ones that I've talked to more than a brief comment and I've been reading them the longest of any blogs.
Boogie
Quelle Erqsome
and A Good Yarn

Inspiration

I now have 171 blogs that I read through bloglines. (pardon that I have not updated my blogroll in a very long time) Why do I read them all? Why is the variety so eclectic? Let's see, knitting blogs, craft blogs, humor blogs, geography blogs, lolcats, yoga blogs, food blogs, US dept of state blog, farming, simple living, even 3 blogs that I write myself, maps and pictures and cartoons. What a strange person I am. Even I think I'm strange. I guess I'm looking for inspiration, looking for ideas. You never know where an idea will come from. You never know how an intersection of ideas will produce something wonderful. I think the worst thing a person can do is limit themselves to one set of ideas, to one field. There is so much out in the world, so much to learn and discover. To me, creativity is just using a jumble of other ideas and putting them together in new and different ways. Life would be much duller without all these things.
Have a good day!

The too-big sock

I'm knitting another too-big monkey sock but dad has graciously agreed to take them off my hands when I get done. I'm very slowly working on a shawl but I only like to knit on it when I'm awake and it's daylight out. Awake, meaning I'm not tired or hungry or depressed. It's coming along slowly but actually looks pretty. I'm not who will get it when I'm done. I started spinning some icelandic wool from the January Spunky Club. It's coarse and scratchy but very easy to spin and I like it. I need some ideas of something small I can knit it into. We'll see. I know there is homework waiting for me but I haven't felt like it at all this week. I feel like I have all these problems and all these ideas all jumbled in my head and I can't seem to sort anything out anymore. A long vacation would be nice.

Socks

You'd think I could knit something that would actually fit me. Here I am, knitting something day after day and then I try it on and it's too big, or too small. I'm right here for goodness sake. I can try it on anytime, because, like I said, I'm right here. But no, I made one pair of socks for me that turned out to small (mom has them now), and I'm currently knitting a pair that is turning out too big. Since I've spent a lot of time, I don't want to frog them. Someone else will get them. Someday I will knit some socks for me. Someday, someday.

Time flies.

One thing about writing in a blog, time passes so quickly between posts. I think it's only been a day or two since I posted and it's been 6. I must be busy or something. I finished the heel flap on one monkey sock but no other knitting has been accomplished. A tiny bit of spinning has been done. So what have I been doing? I don't have a clue. I have a headache today so not much will get done.

Finished

I finished the Socks that Rock socks, finally. The 3rd sock came out the best with the tiniest holes in it. (Yes, I knit 3 as I knit the first one twice) They should be good. So now I just have the Monkey socks in progress and I started a crocheted lamb this morning. He's going to be pink with a blue face. Not your normal sheep. But who wants a normal sheep?

I lied

The yarn I spun over the weekend may turn into a crocheted pink lamb. I found the cutest sheep pattern over at Lion Brand and my nephews are coming this weekend so it just might happen. I have a test in class today but tonight I have nothing to do except practice my singing and watch Talledega Nights. Don't tell me what happens, I haven't seen it yet. Yes I know, it's Will Ferrell, so I know what to expect.

Progress

Well, I'm nearly finished with the sock that will match the sock with a hole in it. The second sock has a tiny hole so maybe if I knit about 10 more of these socks, the hole will eventually disappear. I'm knitting these with Socks that Rock mediumweight the Mudslide colorway. I love the yarn so it wasn't much of chore to reknit the second sock. I've also started some monkey socks with Regia sock yarn my sis bought me for Christmas. The pattern really isn't too hard and it's going pretty well. I tried to start a stole with my fancy Jaeger yarn but after 3 rows I already had 10 extra stitches so I pulled that out to retry it some other time. The pattern isn't too hard but I've never knit with such fine yarn and so I better really pay attention.
The real news is my Ashford spinning wheel is wonderful. I spun 4 ounces of Spunky club fiber from November. The yarn came out very nice and I'd like to make some mittens but I'm still looking for an easy pattern. Now, spinning time is battling with my homework time.
This Friday I'm singing a small solo in a Good Friday musical presentation at church so I've been practicing that every night now. I'll be nervous but it should go well.

New Blog

I've started a new blog, Better Living on the Cheap. Please take a look and let me know what you think. It's something I've been interested in working on for a long time. I appreciate any feedback on topics or writing. I want it to be a really useful resource for people.
Thanks!

Let's see if anyone is reading this.

Here's a movie meme I saw on several blogs.
And here's da rules........

1. Pick 10 of your favorite movies.
2. Go to IMDB and find a quote from each movie.
3. Post them here for everyone to guess.
4. Strike it out when someone guesses correctly, and put who guessed it and the movie.
5. No Googling or IMDB-ing. That's cheating, and that's no fun!

So see if you can guess mine......

1. I bribed them to sing a song that would drive us insane and make our hearts swell and burst.

2. You think that you're too cool for school, but I have a newsflash for you Walter Cronkite... you aren't.

3. Please! This is supposed to be a happy occasion. Let's not bicker and argue over who killed who.

4. Burrowing bounders! They must be breeding like... well, rabbits.

5. You're wondering, "What is a place like me doing in a girl like this?"

6. No more training do you require. Already know you, that which you need.

7. Your stunned silence is very reassuring.

8. How can a train be lost? It's on rails.

9. And then he calls me a jerk and says the last guy who thought he was a jerk was dead now. So I don't say nothin' and he says, "What do ya think about that?" So I says, "Well, that don't sound like too good a deal for him then."

10. I suppose the life of an anorexic duck doesn't amount to much in the broad scheme of things.

In which

Knitting is discussed.

Kid Quotes

"Mom, do you know why I was born weird?"
"No I don't, tell me"
"Well, I don't know but I can see through fences."

Spinning wheel

My spinning wheel is here. I really like it. The idea that I can create something beautiful with a machine that doesn't run on electricity and will last forever if I take care of it is a great thing. It needs a little oiling and finishing and tightening up but it works and I love it. Last night my kids wanted to treadle while I drafted the wool in but that's ok. I want them to appreciate making things and skills that not that many people have.

New trends

You know how everyone looks for the latest trends, those hip styles, the coolest car to drive, or even the trend of checking out the latest trends. I think of myself as someone who looks at trends as well and the past few days I have noticed something. A trend is starting in the knitblogs. Take a look at this, and then this. Is that what I think it is? Knitting underwear? Hmmmm. They claim to be knitting socks but you never know. Perhaps they are knitting "socks". I blame this. Scroll down to the last picture.

A present for me.

I'm getting a spinning wheel. I think I'm excited. It will be here on Sunday. It's an Ashford Traditional double treadle. I won't tell you the ridiculously low price I'm paying. Then you'd just be mad at me. I didn't think I'd get one for years and years. Perhaps the February Spin it will get done. I'm happy.

Ack!

I look at my blog and there on the sidebar is spin it in Feb and knit it in March. Ack! I'm spinning a merino/bamboo blend from Spunky and even though it's only 2 ounces it's never ending. It seems like with the time I've spent, I'll be able to make a huge man sweater with this yarn. Well, maybe not. I like the blend. Very pretty. I'd show you if I had such a thing as a digital camera. What with homework and scholarships to apply for, who know if it will get spun.

Peanut butter

As in peanut butter and jelly sandwich, but without the jelly. Dry but ok to eat.
I've been doing a lot of soul searching lately. My life seems not right. It's like I'm lost in a world of I don't know what to do. It muddles your thinking and makes you write not good sentences and stuff. ya know? I'll let you know what happens if the thinking ever un-muddles. I've got a lot of ideas going around in my head.

Knitting

I was looking forward to finishing a sock this weekend. Looking....looking....looking. I discovered a hole. Not just a little, totally-ignorable hole, a big honking hole that you can actually see without glasses. Oh dear. So the sock is now frogged and restarted and hopefully we will avoid that little problem the next time around. I do love knitting with Socks that Rock yarn though. It was upsetting me greatly so I started a new hat and did some spinning.

Birthday

Since I am not the kind of person that goes around telling everyone it's my birthday, I'll just say it here. Not many people read this so it's ok (I'm telling myself).
I had a lovely breakfast bought by co-workers this morning and so I'm slightly fatter and happy too. If it wasn't President's day, I might get a card in the mail too. But maybe tomorrow. If I'm lucky.

Random

One of these days I'll do one of those random meme things about me but for today I just have one. I love ordering books through interlibrary loan. That means I order the book, a few days later I get a notice that it has come in and I go pick it up. The fun part is that I've usually forgotten what I ordered. Then it's a surprise and it's like getting a gift from someone who knows me well, as I guess I probably do.
I just got my birthday gift to myself yesterday and I'm very happy with it I must say. Do I know me or what?

No cold today?

It's actually 22F outside now and tomorrow is supposed to get to 38F. With all the snow we have we are going to have lakes everywhere. And then of course, snow is predicted for Thursday. This has been the snowiest winter in a very long time. Water is always good for around here but we aren't used to it at all.

Monday, Monday

Well, it looks as if I'm only going to get one charity hat done. (I know, I can knit them anytime to give) I could probably get another one done if I continued to forego studying for a test I have this week (not wise seeing as I didn't do too well on the one last week) But as of this moment, I have forthwith decided to actually study every night until the test. Really, I will.
I did finish a pair of socks for my mom last night. If I can remember, I will give them to her tonight. I was making them for myself, but when I got the toe finished, turns out they were too small for me. They were made from some recycled sweater yarn I got from a thrift store. The man's size sweater yielded enough yarn for about 6 pairs of socks I think. So I promptly cast on another pair for me (I hope).
I'm working on a scarf for me to match my lovely hat. It's an easy easy pattern so it should be done soon. Crazy Aunt Purl is right about the bigger size needles making it drape better. I'm doing mine on size 13s. Kind of odd switching from size 2 for the socks to size 13 for a scarf.
My carpool partner was listening to my baby alpaca yarn woes and hinted (strongly) that she'd like some socks made from the baby alpaca and that my woes would be over if I would just do that. So, I guess I'll look for a good worsted weight sock pattern. Easy would be good too.

Kind of fun

The Recipe For katie

3 parts Warmth 2 parts Fascination 1 part Craftiness Splash of Rebellion Serve over ice

What's the Recipe for Your Personality?

Tricksy sun

The sun is out nearly every day here in sunny colorful Colorado. The days are getting longer and so the sun comes up a few seconds earlier every day. Bright and beautiful, it shines upon us. It's life-giving light illuminating our lives. It's invigorating warmth bringing life to all froz....... wait. There's no warmth coming out, none whatsoever. It's bright but not warm. Something is definitely wrong with the sun. It's not working correctly. Perhaps a battery is run down. Just slap a new double A in that puppy and make it go. Spring seems so far away. (Can you hear the wind laughing at me?)

this post inspired by karie

More hats and hats and hats

I finished up a hat for charity knitting and also finished up another bright rainbow hat for my other son. In doing that I realized that I've knit 5 hats this year already. Either they are fast and easy or I've been knitting way more than I usually do. Someday I will have a camera again and can take pictures. 4 of the hats were the same pattern mostly, just a basic stockinette stitch and then decreasing at the top. All my boys (even the big one) are now wearing their hats all the time. I'm hoping to do one more for charity and I want to finish a second sock for my mom pretty quickly now. Hmmm, I should be reading my homework too but the book is beyond dull even though I like the subject matter. Well, I wanted to go to school again so I better buckle down I guess.

Sustainability

As you can see from some of the blogs I read, I'm into being environmentally conscious. I found this picture over at No Impact Man. I went to a budget type meeting where I work today and realized how far away I'm getting from that kind of mentality. Worrying about budgets and state funding and politics and such. I'm really looking for a better way to do things. From the graph, obviously people aren't getting any happier from all their increased wealth. So me thinking that money will make me happier is definitely a wrong way to be thinking about things. This year I'm trying to consciously think about what I do and if it's what I really want to do, or if I'm doing it because of some set of "rules" I have in my head from the 1980s "telling" me I want to have a certain kind of life because "that's what you are supposed to do". Those rules haven't been working out for me so it's time to do something different.

Funny kid quotes

Mom, I want a kiss so lay one on me, woman.

FO

Well, I finished a hat over the weekend. What I was intending was to do this. But when I finished the hat, I had hubby try it on to make sure it would fit a guy, but he decided it was just the right color and size and so he kept it. Well, if he'll wears it I guess it's ok. Then my kids chimed in that they wanted hats too so I started one of those last night. You should see the rainbow colors they picked. When I'm knitting it I won't be able to hear anything because the colors are too loud. Perhaps I'll get another hat done in time for her deadline. I have the yarn already but life might get in the way. Homework and housecleaning and eating and sleeping and stuff.

Strange Days

Make no mistake, it's cold out there. 10 degrees F or less all day. We woke up to snow, now there is a little breeze so when it's snowing, the snow hits you right in the face no matter what direction you are going and if it's not snowing at the moment, the wind pretty much hits you in the face any direction you are going. It's cold out there. A walk across campus to a meeting and back pretty much confirmed the snow and cold in your face. Then, getting a ride to the grocery store because of the aforementioned cold and walking back in yet a different direction with the wind in your face making you cold. Then you feel the cold. At the grocery store, picking up something for lunch and pausing..... frozen food section...... Ben and Jerry's ice cream..... Ben and Jerry's chocolate fudge brownie ice cream. It's only a $1. I had some last summer and it was wonderful. Picking it up and buying it to eat for dessert. Oh yum.
Oh, did I mention it's cold out there?

Quote of the Week

Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the trade winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover. - Mark Twain

Snow

We woke up this morning to snow softly falling outside. It's still softly falling but the roads weren't bad at all. This is more snow than we've had in years and since it's staying cold, the snow isn't melting either. I love watching the snow coming down. Actually I usually don't mind driving in it either as long as I can see decently well. People tend to not go out in the snow either so that means the office quiets down too.

In progress

I finished a hat! And I even started it this year! And it fits me! wow I started the socks with the Socks that Rock yarn. Now I understand why people like this yarn so much. I want more now. And more and more and more. I can feel a stash eventually coming.
I've started classes again so again my knitting time will be limited but it's a nice break from reading or studying.

That's Tootie Cootiekisser to you

Follow the instructions to find your new name. The following is an excerpt from a children's book,* "Captain Underpants and the Perilous Plot of Professor Poopy-pants" by Dave Pilkey: The evil Professor forces everyone to assume new names...
Use the third letter of your first name to determine your New first name:

• • a = poopsie
  • b = lumpy
  • c = buttercup
  • d = gidget
  • e = crusty
  • f = greasy
  • g = fluffy
  • h = cheeseball
  • i = chim-chim
  • j = stinky
  • k = flunky
  • l = boobie
  • m = pinky
  • n = zippy
  • o = goober
  • p = doofus
  • q = slimy
  • r = loopy
  • s = snotty
  • t = tootie
  • u = dorkey
  • v = squeezit
  • w = oprah
  • x = skipper
  • y = dinky
  • z = zsa-zsa

Use the second letter of your last name to determine the first half of your new last name:

• • * a = apple
  • * b = toilet
  • * c = giggle
  • * d = burger
  • * e = girdle
  • * f = barf
  • * g = lizard
  • * h = waffle
  • * i = cootie
  • * j = monkey
  • * k = potty
  • * l = liver
  • * m = banana
  • * n = rhino
  • * o = bubble
  • * p = hamster
  • * q = toad
  • * r = gizzard
  • * s = pizza
  • * t = gerbil
  • * u = chicken
  • * v = pickle
  • * w = chuckle
  • * x = tofu
  • * y = gorilla
  • * z = stinker

Use the fourth letter of your last name to determine the second half of your new last name:

• • * a = head
  • * b = mouth
  • * c = face
  • * d = nose
  • * e = tush
  • * f = breath
  • * g = pants
  • * h = shorts
  • * i = lips
  • * j = honker
  • * k = butt
  • * l = brain
  • * m = tushie
  • * n = chunks
  • * o = hiney
  • * p = biscuits
  • * q = toes
  • * r = buns
  • * s = fanny
  • * t = sniffer
  • * u = sprinkles
  • * v = kisser
  • * w = squirt
  • * x = humperdinck
  • * y = brains
  • * z = juice

Thus, for example, George W. Bush's new name is Goober Chickenshorts.

Be ye careful!

The Garden Post

So, the first week in January I get my Gurney's seed catalog. I peruse the pages, drooling over the lovely vegetables (flowers aren't really worth growing other than ones that will come up every year without any intervention from me, in my opinion). I want these vegetables, I love eating these vegetables. So I plan a garden, things I like to eat. I get the seeds, plan on when I'm going to rototill (back and hand breaking job), plant the seeds, all nice and organized like. But then it comes, the hard part, the annoying part. Weeding and watering. Why can't these things come up by themselves? Why aren't they strong enough to force the weeds out? Why can't it just rain a bit every day to take care of that? I like the harvesting and preserving parts too. So after years of not getting the garden weeded enough(picture tall stands of weeds where you can't even tell what I've planted there), and barely getting it watered enough, I've decided. Why should I do it? I don't enjoy that part enough and I don't get all the produce I want that way anyway. Why not buy from a farmer's market? Why not? Duh! We have them even in this tiny town. There are other people that like to do the watering and weeding parts. Let them! It's worth it to me to pay a little more for the produce that I don't have to do all that work for. Totally worth it. Of course, another little thought niggling the back of my brain is that I much prefer animals and could trade the garden people for meat or milk or something for their lovely vegetables. (Don't tell me an animal is just as much or more work as a garden. I know that. But vegetables don't complain audibly when you don't feed and water them, so it's easier to remember the animals).

Quote of the Day

By a coworker...

"Wow, it's snowing up a storm out there!"

New stuff

Well, here's my list for finished knitting/spinning things for 2007. (peer pressure to make a list, it is)

3 pairs socks
3 scarves (1 made with handspun)
1 hat (made with handspun)
1 headband

I'm halfway through another pair of sock and halfway through another headband(that I'm rapidly growing tired of knitting) and I started a hat yesterday because I wanted a hat. Not too bad a total for me considering everything else I do too.
I got great yarn for Christmas. 2 skeins of silk/wool and 2 skeins of Regia sock yarn. I don't have the first one in front of me so I can't conjure up the brand off the top of my head. The silk/wool I'm thinking of making into a scarf as soon as I get some Addi circular needles. The sock yarn I've decided today to try the Monkey socks.
I'm halfway through spinning some fiber from Spunky. The merino/bamboo colorway "Vineyard" and the superwash merino colorway "Amaryllis". I'm hoping hoping that I will get to order the fiber of the month again this month. I'm waiting to see how much I get back on my loans for classes this semester. I'm taking two classes and need books but I'm hoping to get at least $15 for new fiber. Oh, and $20 for a new spindle. My other one has developed a crack. Well, not developed. Ummm, kind of jammed between my leg and a doorway. My leg now has a bruise, the spindle has a massive crack in the shaft and the doorway has no damage to show. The spindle still spins, albeit heavier and kind of wobbly. But I'm *such* an experienced spinner it shouldn't....matter.....at......allllllll. Yeah, we'll see.

Quote of the Week

Notice I do not say find the time. That is an absurd and dangerous phrase. Time is never lying around waiting for us to find her.
Jennifer Louden

I've found an idea for a post

It's kind of a meme thing but here goes.

SUPPOSEDLY if you’ve seen over 85 films, 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 this as a note. Then, put x’s next to the films you’ve seen, add them up.Have fun!
(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
(x ) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
( ) Blazing Saddles
( X) Airplane
Total=7
(X) The Princess Bride
() AnchorMan
(x)Napoleon Dynamite
( X) Labyrinth
( ) Saw ( ) Saw II
( ) White Noise
( ) White Oleander
() Anger Management
(x) 50 First Dates
( ) The Princess Diaries
( ) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
Total so far: 11
(x) Scream ( ) Scream 2 ( ) Scream 3
(x) Scary Movie ( ) Scary Movie 2( ) Scary Movie 3( ) Scary Movie 4
(x) American Pie (x) American Pie 2 ( ) American Wedding ( ) American Pie Band Camp
Total so far: 15
(x) Harry Potter 1(x) Harry Potter 2( x) Harry Potter 3( x) Harry Potter 4
( ) Resident Evil 1( ) Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
( ) Little Black Book
() The Village
( X) Lilo & Stitch
Total so far: 21
(X) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
(X) Signs
(x) The Grinch
( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre( ) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( x) White Chicks
( ) Butterfly Effect
( ) 13 Going on 30
(x) I, Robot
() Robots
Total so far: 26
( x) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
() Universal Soldier
(x) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
(x) Along Came Polly
(x ) Deep Impact
( ) KingPin
( ) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
) Eight Crazy Nights( ) Joe Dirt
( ) KING KONG
Total so far: 32
() A Cinderella Story
( X) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
(x ) Dumb & Dumber( ) Dumber & Dumberer
( ) Final Destination( ) Final Destination 2(x )Final Destination 3
( ) Halloween
( ) The Ring ( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving X-MAS
( ) Flubber
Total so far: 35
(x) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
( ) Practical Magic
( ) Chicago
( ) Ghost Ship
( ) From Hell
( X) Hellboy
(X)Secret Window
( ) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards ( ) The Whole Ten Yards
Total so far: 39
(x ) The Day After Tomorrow
( ) Child’s Play
( ) Seed of Chucky( ) Bride of Chuck
( ) Ten Things I Hate About You
( ) Just Married
( ) Gothika
( ) Nightmare on Elm Street
( x) Sixteen Candles
( ) Remember the Titans
( ) Coach Carter
( ) The Grudge ( ) The Grudge 2
(x) The Mask ( ) Son Of The Mask
Total so far: 42
( ) Bad Boys ( ) Bad Boys 2( ) Joy Ride
( ) Lucky Number Sleven
(X) Ocean’s Eleven (X ) Ocean’s Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity (X) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
( ) Bedazzled
( ) Predator I ( ) Predator II
() The Fog
(X) Ice Age( ) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown ( ) Curious George
Total so far: 47
(X) Independence Day
( ) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
( ) Darkness Falls
( ) Christine
(x) ET
( ) Children of the Corn
() My Bosses Daughter
(x) Maid in Manhattan
(x) War of the Worlds
(x ) Rush Hour (x ) Rush Hour 2
Total so far: 53
( ) Best Bet
( ) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
( ) She’s All That
( ) Calendar Girls
( ) Sideways
( ) Mars Attacks
( ) Event Horizon
( ) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
( X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator ( X) The Terminator 2( X) The Terminator 3
Total so far: 59
( ) X-Men( ) X-2( X) X-3
(X) Spider-Man (X) Spider-Man 2
() Sky High
( ) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
(X) Catch Me If You Can
( ) The Little Mermaid
() Freaky Friday
( ) Reign of Fire
() The Skulls
( ) Cruel Intentions( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek (X) Shrek 2
Total so far: 65
( ) Swimfan
( ) Miracle on 34th street
( ) Old School
( ) The Notebook
( X) K-Pax
( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
( X) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
( ) Boogeyman
( ) The 40-year-old Virgin
Total so far: 67
( 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
Total so far: 73
( ) Baseketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
( ) Devils Rejects
() Elf
( X) Highlander
( ) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
Total so Far: 74
( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
( ) Shaolin Soccer
( ) Night Watch
(x) Monsters Inc.
( ) Titanic
(x) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
( ) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willard
Total so far: 76
( ) High Tension
( ) Club Dread
( x) Hulk
( ) Dawn Of the Dead
(x) Hook
( x) Chronicles Of Narnia The Lion the Witch and the Wardrobe
( ) 28 days later
( ) Orgazmo
( ) Phantasm
(X ) Waterworld
Total so far: 80
( ) Kill Bill vol 1 ( ) Kill Bill vol 2
( ) Mortal Kombat
( ) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
( ) the Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave aka the Day of the Woman
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator ( ) Army of Darkness
Total so far: 80
(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
( ) Ewoks Caravan Of Courage( ) Ewoks The Battle For Endor
Total so far: 86
( ) The Matrix ( ) The Matrix Reloaded ( ) The Matrix Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
( ) Evil Dead ( )Evil Dead 2
( ) Team America: World Police
( ) Red Dragon( X) Silence of the Lambs( ) Hannibal
Total: 87

Seems I barely have no life. Some of them I've seen little pieces of them but never the whole thing so I didn't include them. This does give me a few ideas of some I should watch. I don't watch horror but some of the others should be ok.

Philosophy

A post on a forum I read got me to thinking. It was about new year's resolutions. Are they a waste of time? Do they motivate people? Why do it at this date and not some other date in the year? Do people actually keep the resolutions? (I don't think they do) Some years I have a resolution and some years not. I tend to not keep doing something unless I make it fun somehow. My attention span is not all that great. Even something I start out liking I might drop later on. I try to remember this when I make commitments to organizations. I realize that after a year I probably won't be all that interested anymore, even if I feel like I should be. The good thing about this is that I've done a variety of things, been in charge of a variety of things. I'm glad I did them all.

Yoga

I'm an on/off yoga person (mostly off). But I really enjoy it when I'm doing it. And since the holiday pounds are already starting to gather I decided to join a WoYoPracMo that I found out about on the namaste knitters group on Ravelry. You commit to practicing yoga even just a little bit every day in January. I think I'll start this week and then just continue on into January. Hopefully it will get me in the habit of wanting to do it and feel and look a little better in the process. I miss feeling good about myself so I need to do something I guess. Namaste!

Scarf

I've finished plying the merino/tencel and it came out nice. I've started on the Morning Surf Scarf and it's turning out really nice once I learned (again!) to count. It's going pretty quickly too.
The weather has been cold cold. It's been at least 15-20 below zero the last few nights and so everyone pretty much stays inside all the time. You don't go out unless you have to.
I'm hoping Christmas will be a good one this year. It hasn't been good for me the last few years. I'm not getting that 'special' feeling I used to get. But hope springs eternal....

Funny Kid Quotes

Mom, I want another brother so there will be three of us. So spit one out now!

Winter

Well finally, instead of rain we have snow falling. It's not real cold out there today (hence the rain). I have a nice fire going and I'm cleaning and such. I've started plying the merino/tencel and it's driving me crazy. I see why people like tensioned lazy kates now. I spun it really fine and the singles love to twist back on themselves before I get them plied. It's going to take me awhile so please be patient. *smile*

Funny kid quotes

6 year old son "I don't kiss my girlfriend, I just love her."

Getting there

I finished spinning the merino tencel blend. That was from Spunky. So I'm going to ply my singles soon and try and make a scarf out of it for my sister. I'm also planning 3 headbands with beads for different people and a couple hats by Christmas. I just can't believe how much I want fiber. Looking at Ravelry, I click an ad every time it's one I haven't seen before and the first thing I look at is the fiber. Sometimes I ignore the yarn entirely. Very strange. I'm guessing I like my latest hobby. Now I'm afraid to try dyeing or weaving or I will be similarly hooked. Ah well. I don't want to be bored, now do I.