• I've had a headache for two weeks now
• I have the hiccups, which is a) embarrassing and b) annoying and c) gets painful after a while
• I have too much garbage to fit into my car, and I am probably not going to make it to the dump today, either
• My clothes don't fit
• The people at the library here are cranky and have no sense of humour
However, it is a beautiful day. We're going to get outside now.
9/26/2006
9/23/2006
Sharing
M.M. to the kittens (in a very soft high pitched voice):
"Go ahead Rosalita, you can have some, it's ok. Evangelina will let you have some, she can share. Do you know about sharing? Everybody has to share."
9/19/2006
What's with the "S"?
Since when did we get more than one Information Superhighway? I've noticed a burgeoning trend of bloggers referring to "the internets". And not just quaint British or non-English speaking ones, either. Are we being pretentious here, or is there something I'm missing?
9/18/2006
9/16/2006
Ballerina
M.M. was so excited about finally going to ballet that she almost couldn't do anything but run around the studio in circles. She did manage to participate in the class a reasonable amount, but she was pretty distracted and also felt the need to come out and say hi to me several times. I'm hoping and assuming that she'll get the hang of being in a class after a few times.
The whole thing was incredibly cute, with seven 3 year olds in leotards leaping and running around. This morning, M.M. asked if she had ballet again today, so I think it's safe to say she liked it.
9/15/2006
OCD
I'm addicted to the cover art features in the new version of iTunes. I have already spent untold hours downloading the missing CD covers from my online music collection. Now I literally sometimes open iTunes just to look at them and flip through the totally cool interface. It's embarrassing.
9/05/2006
Extended Breastfeeding
It's funny… one of the kittens is still nursing at every opportunity (like a certain almost-3-year-old I know), and I think the other one is completely done. Even in the feline world, some people are ready to give it up sooner than others.
Interestingly, the kitten who is still nursing is more outgoing, more adventurous, and more curious than the other. The earlier weaner seems to be generally self-contained and content. She's more tolerant of M.M. mauling her and carrying her around, and has never tried to go outside.
So apparently (to my mind, anyway) the continued nursing gives that kitten support that allows her to be more daring and independent, so long as she can come back to Mom and get what she needs periodically. Though it looks to me like Mom is getting a little sick of it, and usually gets up and walks away after a very short period of nursing.
8/02/2006
Back in the Blogosphere…maybe
You'd think I'd have a lot to talk about, having moved 300 miles, started a whole new life in a new place etc. etc. But what am I blogging about? My sucky internet service. i had to get satellite because DSL isn't available here, and wireless isn't available here, and dialup can't handle the files I have to send back and forth for work. So, satellite it is. It's perfectly satisfactory except for the past 2 1/2 days when it hasn't worked at all! Apparently some terribly fate has befallen someplace in Laredo, Texas, and this is (of course) the explanation for my lack of service. Which they can't say when it will return.
And of course, this is the week that they Powers That Be (known as the new and enthusiastic President of the Board) has decided that the big humongous book project that's been on my plate for the better part of the past year needs to be done. I'm actually glad about that. I'm not really good sans deadline, and I really want this thing to be over with so I can stop feeling guilty and oppressed about it, and so I can go on to other things that haven't yet taken on the weight of the world for me. But am I working on it? No, I am blogging – writing stuff that no one will read. Any insecurity there? Feelings of inadequacy? Hmmm…
6/03/2006
A-Travelin' On
It's hard to believe, but life is finally moving forward! We're still homeless, but in two weeks we'll be heading on down to the new homeplace, and getting settled is actually on the horizon. I can hardly believe it, and I barely recognize the cheeriness I'm feeling today despite the rain.
I'm nearly finished the Eskimo doll – though what's left is the fiddly bits of sewing up and embellishing, so I've kind of been putting it off for a while. However, today I wound the yarn for a dishcloth from Mason-Dixon Knitting, vaguely rationalizing it as a house present for the friends who've been letting us stay at their house. Notwithstanding the facts that a) they don't actually use dishcloths, b) there's no way in God's creation that I'll actually finish anything in the two weeks before we move, and c) I'm a bit insecure about giving someone a single dishcloth, handknit or no, as a house present for a month of hospitality.
But I couldn't help it. I'll cast on today.
I'm nearly finished the Eskimo doll – though what's left is the fiddly bits of sewing up and embellishing, so I've kind of been putting it off for a while. However, today I wound the yarn for a dishcloth from Mason-Dixon Knitting, vaguely rationalizing it as a house present for the friends who've been letting us stay at their house. Notwithstanding the facts that a) they don't actually use dishcloths, b) there's no way in God's creation that I'll actually finish anything in the two weeks before we move, and c) I'm a bit insecure about giving someone a single dishcloth, handknit or no, as a house present for a month of hospitality.
But I couldn't help it. I'll cast on today.
4/16/2006
Happy Easter
No recent blogging due to travel and general life hecticity. I finished the koigu socks and gave them away - they turned out nicely. Also finished a kitten, also given away, and am still working on the Anna socks and an Eskimo (at M.M.'s request). Life promises to be incredibly hectic for an undetermined length of time, until we're moved and actually living somewhere.
3/11/2006
What Because?
Life with a two and a half year old is exciting and fun and also really really boring! I think if I have to answer one more "What because" question, my head is going to explode. We are taking an unplanned road trip starting tomorrow. It's not like me to be so wild and reckless, but this morning I wanted to be visiting my brother, and I just thought, 'well, why can't I?'. I'm just sitting around here waiting for my house to be sold and marking time, so I might as well take advantage of my state of temporary freedom to do something spontaneous and fun.
3/09/2006
Literary
Knitting Literature
The World of Knitted Toys came to my mailbox today, and I am enthralled. I cannot wait to make a knitted wombat, a warthog, a duck-billed platypus. Also, polar bears, a Canadian Mountie, and a rhinocerous. Each pattern is accompanied by a description of the animals native environment and habits, and the photos are lovely. It's really a nice book. And think of the dioramas I'll be able to make!
Children's Literature
On another topic, we've gotten Click, Clack, Moo out of the library this week. I'd seen it before, and a friend had raved to me about Duck for President by the same author, but I didn't think they'd be good for a 2 year old. I thought both books sounded hilarious for adults, but what preschooler knows anything about labor negotiations, not to mention electric typewriters? I thought the adversarial relationship between Farmer Brown and the cows wouldn't appeal to a little kid – too much Animal Farm, not enough Old McDonald Has A Farm.
Oh how wrong I was. We went to story time at the Community Center last week and they read Click Clack Moo, and the kids were hysterical. Who knew? So we borrowed it from the library the other day, and it's just as funny at home as it was in a roomful of hyped up toddlers. We have had some discussion about what a typewriter is, and while she clearly doesn't get it ("What's the paper for?"). So I'll look for the duck one next week. And so much for my reputation as a judge of children's literary tastes.
The World of Knitted Toys came to my mailbox today, and I am enthralled. I cannot wait to make a knitted wombat, a warthog, a duck-billed platypus. Also, polar bears, a Canadian Mountie, and a rhinocerous. Each pattern is accompanied by a description of the animals native environment and habits, and the photos are lovely. It's really a nice book. And think of the dioramas I'll be able to make!
Children's Literature
On another topic, we've gotten Click, Clack, Moo out of the library this week. I'd seen it before, and a friend had raved to me about Duck for President by the same author, but I didn't think they'd be good for a 2 year old. I thought both books sounded hilarious for adults, but what preschooler knows anything about labor negotiations, not to mention electric typewriters? I thought the adversarial relationship between Farmer Brown and the cows wouldn't appeal to a little kid – too much Animal Farm, not enough Old McDonald Has A Farm.
Oh how wrong I was. We went to story time at the Community Center last week and they read Click Clack Moo, and the kids were hysterical. Who knew? So we borrowed it from the library the other day, and it's just as funny at home as it was in a roomful of hyped up toddlers. We have had some discussion about what a typewriter is, and while she clearly doesn't get it ("What's the paper for?"). So I'll look for the duck one next week. And so much for my reputation as a judge of children's literary tastes.
3/08/2006
OCD
Here's how my perfectionistic, obsessive neurosis affects my knitting. It's not by making me frog everything until there are no mistakes in the finished product. Oh no, there are plenty of mistakes in my (still unfinished) Olympic socks, and I'm perfectly happy to let them slide right by on my needles. No, my neurosis is a little more subtle.
It all started when I got the lovely Anna yarn for some nice lace socks. I decided I'd knit them for my cousin (who I'm pretty sure can't be reading this blog, but if she is, there goes that surprise).
My cousin has two sisters. Can you see where this is going? Shortly after I got started on the Anna socks, for cousin #1, Stephanie announced the Knitting Olympics and, well, we all know where that led. My Olympic project was another pair of lace socks, these for cousin #2. Which, of course, I did not finish, but hope to be done with in the next several days. So now I'm thinking about poor old cousin #3. I hadn't planned to knit socks for her. She's younger, maybe less interested in clothing and more in Harry Potter, you know. Maybe less likely to be impressed with hand-knit socks than her older sisters. But I'd hate for her to feel left out, so…. Then I realized, these three girls have a mother. And she has feet, and I wouldn't want her to feel that I was slighting her by knitting socks for her three girls but not for her…
So where am I now? I have a single Anna sock (properly referred to as a Peaks and Valleys sock, but I'm focused on the yarn) about a quarter finished. I have a sock and a half of the Koigu Olympic socks (I think the pattern is called Straight Laced, but I'm not sure). And I have an inner compulsion to knit two more pairs of socks, patterns and yarn as yet unknown, to avoid hypothetically hurting the feelings of people who are probably not sitting around pining for hand-knit socks, or worrying about whether I like them as much as I do their sisters or daughters. I am not unaware of the fact that it's an opportunity to buy – and more importantly, consider, choose, and fondle, new yarn.
I'm also very excited because I've ordered this book and expect it to arrive in a few days. I can't wait to make whole little ecosystems of knitted arctic wildlife and the like, including little shoebox dioramas for them to live in. I'm truly, truly a dork. But a really excited dork.
It all started when I got the lovely Anna yarn for some nice lace socks. I decided I'd knit them for my cousin (who I'm pretty sure can't be reading this blog, but if she is, there goes that surprise).
My cousin has two sisters. Can you see where this is going? Shortly after I got started on the Anna socks, for cousin #1, Stephanie announced the Knitting Olympics and, well, we all know where that led. My Olympic project was another pair of lace socks, these for cousin #2. Which, of course, I did not finish, but hope to be done with in the next several days. So now I'm thinking about poor old cousin #3. I hadn't planned to knit socks for her. She's younger, maybe less interested in clothing and more in Harry Potter, you know. Maybe less likely to be impressed with hand-knit socks than her older sisters. But I'd hate for her to feel left out, so…. Then I realized, these three girls have a mother. And she has feet, and I wouldn't want her to feel that I was slighting her by knitting socks for her three girls but not for her…
So where am I now? I have a single Anna sock (properly referred to as a Peaks and Valleys sock, but I'm focused on the yarn) about a quarter finished. I have a sock and a half of the Koigu Olympic socks (I think the pattern is called Straight Laced, but I'm not sure). And I have an inner compulsion to knit two more pairs of socks, patterns and yarn as yet unknown, to avoid hypothetically hurting the feelings of people who are probably not sitting around pining for hand-knit socks, or worrying about whether I like them as much as I do their sisters or daughters. I am not unaware of the fact that it's an opportunity to buy – and more importantly, consider, choose, and fondle, new yarn.
I'm also very excited because I've ordered this book and expect it to arrive in a few days. I can't wait to make whole little ecosystems of knitted arctic wildlife and the like, including little shoebox dioramas for them to live in. I'm truly, truly a dork. But a really excited dork.
2/27/2006
Final Status
I really have to apologize for the crappy nature of my knitting photography. I'm no professional photog, but I am generally able to take a fairly decent picture, and occasionally even a really nice one. But for some reason I am unable to do make my knitting be in focus. Auto focus, manual focus, doesn't matter. I don't know why. Perhaps I'll start deliberately blurring everything and calling it artistic. Or maybe I need new glasses…
Here is the status of my socks as of the final day of the Olympics. Not a completed pair, which was my goal, but a respectable showing given that I knew I'd be a little lucky to finish one sock. I'm not too disappointed.
I must say, though, that throughout BlogLand there don't seem to be many unfinished Olympic projects hanging around. I'm very impressed by everyone's work. The complicated patterns! The many mittens! The sweaters, hats, and shawls! I'm in awe, and I'm unworthy, but inspired. Someday perhaps I won't be a knitting loser.
Here is the status of my socks as of the final day of the Olympics. Not a completed pair, which was my goal, but a respectable showing given that I knew I'd be a little lucky to finish one sock. I'm not too disappointed.
I must say, though, that throughout BlogLand there don't seem to be many unfinished Olympic projects hanging around. I'm very impressed by everyone's work. The complicated patterns! The many mittens! The sweaters, hats, and shawls! I'm in awe, and I'm unworthy, but inspired. Someday perhaps I won't be a knitting loser.
2/25/2006
One Down
It turned out well, I think. I'm pleased. I am valiantly continuing to knit on sock #2 through the weekend – no quitter, I, despite the utter hopelessness of completing my Olympic challenge by the time the flame is extinguished. I'll take a photo tomorrow night to document how close I came to meeting my goal.
Well, easy come easy go.
2/23/2006
Sockity Sock
So fast, she's invisible!
Olympic Update
One sock done, finito, kaput! Hooray. Looks nice, feels good. I ran into a few, er, blips in the last couple of inches. Suddenly I'd have not enough stitches on my needle. I confess to not having properly fixed each one. But I can't find the spots now, so I'm satisfied. I've cast on and knit about an inch of sock #2, and I'm feeling pleased about starting the downhill slope and a tad disappointed I won't be in medal contention. Although as Heather pointed out, being the sole caretaker of a 2 year old 24/7 ought to qualify me for something.
Gratuitous cuteness now, sock photos maybe tomorrow.
Olympic Update
One sock done, finito, kaput! Hooray. Looks nice, feels good. I ran into a few, er, blips in the last couple of inches. Suddenly I'd have not enough stitches on my needle. I confess to not having properly fixed each one. But I can't find the spots now, so I'm satisfied. I've cast on and knit about an inch of sock #2, and I'm feeling pleased about starting the downhill slope and a tad disappointed I won't be in medal contention. Although as Heather pointed out, being the sole caretaker of a 2 year old 24/7 ought to qualify me for something.
Gratuitous cuteness now, sock photos maybe tomorrow.
2/18/2006
8 Days Down
Here we have photos. You can clearly see that I am not on schedule with the Olympic Knitting, as I'd need to be finished with sock #1 tonight to be on track to finish the pair by the 26th… that said, however, I am pleased with the progress. I've finished turning the heel and I'm well on my way to the final gusset decrease, and I didn't honestly expect to get that far in a week and a day. And hey, I've had a lot of insomnia lately, so maybe I can make significant progress tonight before I go to bed…
I'm afraid my photography is not good enough to really see, but I think it is clear that my sock doesn't look much like the photo in the book. Looking at my sock on its own, I feel pretty happy with it, and if all continues to go well, I'll be perfectly willing to give them to my cousin as planned (as long as she never sees what they're 'supposed' to look like!). However, if you can figure out what I'm doing wrong, I'd be interested to hear for the sake of my evolution as a knitter. Please be tolerant of the wretched colors in this photo. The yarn is truly much more beautiful than it appears. The reds are not so blinding, and the colors all work together much more subtly than you'd ever guess from this photography.
I'm absolutely wracked with worry that I'm not going to have enough yarn. My little ball is dwindling with diabolical speed, and if I run out I'm going to tear out my hair. I'm already trying to come up with some twisted style rationalization for doing half of the second sock in a different yarn.
I continue to be very satisfied with the Koigu, and I'm happily mulling over what I'd like to use it for next, now that I've got an idea how it knits up. I'd love to do something with a simple stitch pattern that really lets those gorgeous colors shine.
I'm afraid my photography is not good enough to really see, but I think it is clear that my sock doesn't look much like the photo in the book. Looking at my sock on its own, I feel pretty happy with it, and if all continues to go well, I'll be perfectly willing to give them to my cousin as planned (as long as she never sees what they're 'supposed' to look like!). However, if you can figure out what I'm doing wrong, I'd be interested to hear for the sake of my evolution as a knitter. Please be tolerant of the wretched colors in this photo. The yarn is truly much more beautiful than it appears. The reds are not so blinding, and the colors all work together much more subtly than you'd ever guess from this photography.
I'm absolutely wracked with worry that I'm not going to have enough yarn. My little ball is dwindling with diabolical speed, and if I run out I'm going to tear out my hair. I'm already trying to come up with some twisted style rationalization for doing half of the second sock in a different yarn.
I continue to be very satisfied with the Koigu, and I'm happily mulling over what I'd like to use it for next, now that I've got an idea how it knits up. I'd love to do something with a simple stitch pattern that really lets those gorgeous colors shine.
2/16/2006
Stitch Confusion
I've reached the end of my first leg, and am about to embark on the heel. I'm still worried about running out of yarn. I'm also confused. While the pattern looks very nice, it doesn't look like the picture in the book. I'm not redoing it, because there's nothing wrong with what I've got. But I wouldn't mind knowing what I'm doing wrong. The stitches of my sock run diagonally, so they spiral on down the leg. The photo of the socks in the book doesn't show this. Clearly, there's something wrong with my SSKs (I think). But I can't imagine what. I'm pretty confident that I know how an SSK works, and in all other contexts, it seems to make the stitches lean the way they're meant to, on sock decreases and such. So I don't get it. Maybe it will become clear in the fullness of time when I complete the sock, or start the next one in the next day and a half to keep up with my Olympic schedule. < end irony, sarcasm>
2/15/2006
Enumerated Whining
Problems I'm having with my Olympic socks:
1. I broke a freaking needle – I don't even know how, it was just broken suddenly when I picked up the knitting last night. I haven't even found the other end. I have two other sets of size 1s, but neither work. They're both too long, for one thing. And one is way too bendy. And the other, wellÂ… They're Fiddlesticks bamboo needles, and clearly say "US#1" on them, but they are too fat. They felt fat, but I didn't trust my senses. I rolled them between my fingers, then a #1 from another set. Still felt fat. I finally stuck 'em in the #1 hole of my trusty Knit Chek, and it did not fit!. I'm quite peeved. I may take them back to the store I got them at. SO anyway, they're of no use as replacements for the broken needle. I've ordered a new set, so now I'll have extras.
2. I'm afraid I'm not going to have enough yarn. I have two skeins of Koigu, which should work out to 1 skein per sock, which should be pretty safe, right? But I'm not done with the leg of the first sock yet, and I'm getting twinges of anxiety when I look at the smallness of the ball. It's really looking quite small. And the foot is supposed to be longer than the leg, which doesn't even take into account the heel or toe. So I should have way more than half a ball left. I'm afraid I don't. Time will tell.
3. UmÂ… It's what? Day 6 of the Olympic Challenge? I'm supposed to be two days away from finishing the first sock? Well, read number 2 up there, bucko. Not done with the leg yet.
1. I broke a freaking needle – I don't even know how, it was just broken suddenly when I picked up the knitting last night. I haven't even found the other end. I have two other sets of size 1s, but neither work. They're both too long, for one thing. And one is way too bendy. And the other, wellÂ… They're Fiddlesticks bamboo needles, and clearly say "US#1" on them, but they are too fat. They felt fat, but I didn't trust my senses. I rolled them between my fingers, then a #1 from another set. Still felt fat. I finally stuck 'em in the #1 hole of my trusty Knit Chek, and it did not fit!. I'm quite peeved. I may take them back to the store I got them at. SO anyway, they're of no use as replacements for the broken needle. I've ordered a new set, so now I'll have extras.
2. I'm afraid I'm not going to have enough yarn. I have two skeins of Koigu, which should work out to 1 skein per sock, which should be pretty safe, right? But I'm not done with the leg of the first sock yet, and I'm getting twinges of anxiety when I look at the smallness of the ball. It's really looking quite small. And the foot is supposed to be longer than the leg, which doesn't even take into account the heel or toe. So I should have way more than half a ball left. I'm afraid I don't. Time will tell.
3. UmÂ… It's what? Day 6 of the Olympic Challenge? I'm supposed to be two days away from finishing the first sock? Well, read number 2 up there, bucko. Not done with the leg yet.
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