Tuesday, January 26, 2010

Saturday, January 23, 2010

Steel Horses and Sweet Lucy

If you haven't heard the good news, I am officially employed as of 1 February! I'm pretty stoked and relieved. Mini-Me's dad comes home from his trip to Douchebagistan on Thursday, and I didn't want to have to hear what he had to say if I was without employment.

I some times think that he's forgotten that I'm no longer his wife. 'Nuff said.

I had to throw steel horse in the title of this blog because getting a job means being able to buy tickets to go and see Bon Jovi in Charlotte with my girl Wenders. I've been in love with Bon Jovi since I was about 10, but never really had the chance to see them when I was younger. So, here we are, 24 years later and I'm going to see them, damn it.

Woooo-oh! Livin' on a prayer!

(Feel bad for Opal - I've been singing that for about a week now.)

In the mean time, I am taking full advantage of being unemployed. Remember the other day when I lamented about not having a life and just being a rather large slug daily? Well, this week will be full on slug week, minus a few odds and ends.

I've been working on an EZ Sweater - Baby Sweater on Two Needles, from the Knitter's Almanac. (Aka, February Baby Sweater) I'm really happy that I have a full size version of this sweater under my belt, as it's made life so much easier. Here's a progress picture, for those of you who are interested:


I did decide to go ahead and adapt the pattern so that I could knit the sleeves in the round. I don't seam well, and my only other option was to beg Zonda to seam it up for me. (My knitting Mama wouldn't have been pleased with me.)

Speaking of our Zonda, she taught Mini-Me and I to sew last week! We had a great time, and Mini-Me and I are excited at the possibilities.


While I've got the basics down, it still seems pretty overwhelming to me, so I'm going to rely on Sweet Lucy to make it aaalll better.


I lurves me some bourbon. And Sweet Lucy rocks.


For all of you Chewie fans, he's been laying low, wondering when the insanity is going to end.


Personally, I think he's been hitting the Sweet Lucy.

Tuesday, January 19, 2010

As Promised!

Swallowtail Shawl By Evelyn Clark
Knit Picks Shadow, in Eggplant, 1 skein. Knit on US 4.
Beads - Clear Size 6, Purple AB, Size E (Size 8 crochet Hook).

This was a great knit. I had never done nupps before, and they were absolutely easy. I am a visual learner, so I did find myself a video to watch just to ensure I had my act together. The beads were even easier, but I did feel like they were more time consuming. The pattern is well written, provides charts and written directions, as well as the differing amounts of yarn and needle sizes needed if you opt to use heavier gauge yarn.

For those of you who are worried about beads - it's a 4 step process.

1. Put bead on crochet hook and hold it up the hook with your middle finger.
2. Use crochet hook to pick up the stitch you intend to bead off of the left needle.
3. Use your middle finger to slide bead down the crochet hook and onto live stitch.
4. Replace stitch onto left needle, and knit the stitch.
(Check out this guide on Knitty for more info)

Seriously. That's all there is too it. Apparently some patterns indicate whether or not to knit the stitch once it has the bead on it. For the swallowtail, there is no beading information in the pattern, so I opted to knit the stitch. There are a great many resources and out there if you are wanting to bead this particular shawl. Ravelry member "yards-of-yarn" has great info in regards to bead quantities and placement.


(BTW - good to know - when knit as written it takes approx. 210 beads. Know this before you buy beads. Ahem.)

Overall, I'm really pleased with how this turned out. I think Tobs will be too.

Happy Tuesday!

PS - I linked the shawl to a nifty Knit-A-Long site. It has a ton of information on how to knit the shawl larger, needle sizes, etc. For those of you who simply want the pattern, you can find it here. Oh yeah, and it's free. =)


Sunday, January 17, 2010

So What... I've been busy!

And I'm still so off schedule! Gah! I feel like I need to schedule myself in some fashion. For example:

Here is how I currently spend my day:

Step 1 - Wake up. Consume Coffee.
Step 2 - Take Mini-Me to school, return home and consume more coffee.
Step 3 - Waste the whole damned day being relatively unproductive, and not focusing on one task for more than 20 minutes.
Step 4 - Make sure I'm home by 3 for Mini-Me. (That's if I get the gumption to leave the house.)
Step 5 - Waste more time until it's time for sleep.

So you see the problem right? I feel lazy, unproductive and rather bleh. Some thing's got to give.

I did manage to finish a shawl for my good girl Tobs. Pictures to follow. Due to a recent restructuring of furniture, my blocking area is completely not suitable for picture taking.

In the mean time, check out the fluffy white stuff I encountered on a recent trip to NH to see Sunflower Girl get married.

Doesn't she look lovely?


I love the way this tree looks in the snow. I'm still unsure if one should call it a hydrangea bush or a tree - the thing is taller than me. While the jury is still deliberating, I figure we should call it a tree.


And no, 'lil Chewie stayed home and out of the snow.

I promise there will be pictures of yarn next post.

Promise.

Wednesday, January 6, 2010

No talking. Just reading.

In the morning, she wakes up, and opens her eyes to the ceiling.

She rolls over to look at the clock and closes her eyes. No. Not yet.

See, she’s still caught up in her dreams. Didn’t she tell you it’s easier there? None of whatever this is. When she’s sleeping, it’s easier. She can float where she wants, see the colors with unparalleled clarity, and sing the songs that she wants to sing. When she sleeps, the water is as cold or as hot as she wants it. The rain is soft or roaring. She’s free to let her mind wander without fear of discovery. Perhaps she wants to laugh with him. Maybe she just wants to think of where her heart should go next.

But where does it become reality. How does one take the beauty of the mind and translate it a flat piece of black and white? It’s all in there, you see. Locked inside of her mind. Millions of specs of time that all add up to something – to it. And she wants to know what it is. What is the point in getting to dream if you can’t take it with you?

She’s moved past the dreams that one has as a child – ones that become tangible.

“When I grow up, I’m going to have a swimming pool.”

Check. It’s out there. Right now. Want to go for a swim?

It’s the dreams that are found behind her eyes… The dreams that you can’t create. The perfect shade of robin’s egg blue that filled every inch of your mind, yet there’s no paint chip that could match it once the dream is over. The amazing glow of a smile that filled you with such warmth, and the realization that the smile belongs to a person you’ll never meet.

Can’t you see what she wants? Can’t you see why she wants to take it with her? It’s the perfection that she knows exists.

And so she lays. Trying to go back. Ignoring the sunshine.