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May 31, 2005
My Lost [Knit] Weekend
My weekend was eh.
Don't get me wrong, it has some really good moments - mainly good food moments, but otherwise - not so good. You see, Summer is my LEAST favorite season. I've never liked it. Never. Goes back to being bored and waiting desperately for school. I also hate to be hot - at least in the buggy, muggy Mid-Atlantic kind of hot (drop me in a desert and I'm in heaven). Not that it was hot this weekend - but you know what I'm talking about. Also, I hate Summer because I become a Tennis/Pool widow. Some women lament football season. CursingMama competes with a bike. For me, it's tennis.
Part of me loves Summer in that G can be doing what he loves - he loves Tennis and he loves the sun. And because of the sad state of his body, he always has the feeling that this is the LAST SUMMER he'll be able to do what he loves. I would NEVER want to be the kind of person that keeps him from what he loves. NEVER.
But I get lonely. I'm by myself pretty much the entire week. In my little office working. Out taking pictures. Knitting. Don't get me wrong. I LIKE to be alone. But I can't wait for G to get home from work. Even just to have him in the house. And when Summer comes, it's like I'm alone all week, and then I'm alone all weekend.
So, what better to celebrate than to throw a little tantrum on the first official weekend of Summer? There were tears, there were recrimations, there were apologies. I was so pissed off at myself, really, that I scrubbed the stove top (it was disgusting), cleaned the microwave (not as disgusting as the stove top, but close), mopped and swept the kitchen floor (sticky AND disgusting), mopped and swept two of the three bathroom floors (more dusty than anything else.) Who says mental anguish can't be good for the soul? Or at least the house?
The rest of the day I spent in bed, mad that the TV in the living room was taping FUCKING TENNIS and watched seven consecutive hours of Band of Brothers. It was pretty good and I knit past two decrease sections on Clap-o-TEE. There was no way I wasn't going to finish it this weekend.
Georgie redeemed himself by making me the best lamb chops either of us have ever had. He was SO proud of himself all weekend! They were amazing really - all he did was marinate them in Balsamic Vinegar and some meat rub and throw them on the bbq. He grilled them to perfection.
Then we watched some 24 (we finished the season - more on that tomorrow) and I started dropping stitches on the Clap. GASP! Something went really wrong somewhere on one of the dropped stitches. Suffice it to say the next morning (I could barely sleep thinking about it) I was up at 7AM ripping out all that I had knit the day before (remember 7 hours in front of the TV!) and then some. Can you say broken heart? I got it all out and managed to knit it all back the same day. How come even though you're decreasing stitches, the end doesn't seem to go any faster than the any other part of the project? I finished it last night (well, I need to weave in the ends and drop a few more stitches) watching Empire Falls at around 2AM. It looks good - pictures later.
I also knit this:
Twice.
The first time, it was looking pretty good and I was getting to a really crucial part when I decided to check for size. Too small. There were also a couple areas that could've used some improvement, so I ripped it all out and started over. I'm happier with it now, so that's good, but my whole weekend started to feel like Groundhog Day. Destined to knit the same shit over and over.
I'm just glad it's over.
PS - Donna asked if I jumped in the 50 degree pool I posted a picture of on Friday. No, Donna, I don't do 50 degrees, but the pool was the highlight of the weekend. It was funny as shit to hear people jump in and immediately start screaming about the cold. I'm not kidding. And you know a pool is cold when the kids can't handle it. Georgie said it was crazy cold (and this is a guy that swims in the Atlantic Ocean in October without a wet suit). Even he was questioning his sanity.
Posted by Cara at 08:49 AM | Comments (13)
May 27, 2005
My Eyes! My Eyes!
When I opened the black-out drapes this morning, I gasped. My arms immediately flew up to cover my eyes as I stumbled back from the window. For what did I see but miles and miles of blue sky! Nary a cloud in sight! Behold!THE SUN!
Click for fabulous bug details!
May your pool open with fanfare and warmth!
Have a great weekend!
Posted by Cara at 07:55 AM | Comments (18)
May 26, 2005
OUCH!
Click on picture for super pollen detail!
Man, I hate when I'm a stupid ass.
Yesterday, I was so upset about that damn TV show, I posted something on the Internets (a board I used to frequent, but don't anymore, precisely because it upsets me) and I didn't get the reaction I was looking for. Well, DUH! That's why I left in the first place. And then I just proceeded to get more and more upset. There's nothing I hate more than stupidity - especially when practiced by moi. Nothing. Drives me batty.
Luckily, Jen saved me (as she does more and more these days.) She called and asked to run some errands (I hope D liked the chair!) which included buying some of these (which I proceeded to just about finish when you left - vomit much?) and watching this. At first I was putting together some cards, but quickly moved to knitting. I managed to drop three more stitches on Clap-o-TEE (my goofy spelling for the person who asked. Nothing wrong with a little goof, I always say.) I'm about done my fourth hank of silk, and I'm STILL not sure how long it is. But I think I'll finish this and maybe drop one more stitch for good measure on the next hank and then start the decreases. I'd like to finish it up this weekend. I'm done with it. Don't get me wrong - it's beautiful and I love the pattern, but I'm bored. I want SHORT ROWS!
While she was here, Jen finished seaming a cutie pie raglan in Calmer - so super cute! And it was her first finished sweater! I was honored to be there for such a momentous event. I see lots more in her future.
So Jen left and I ate myself into sickness. What's wrong with me? Basically, I just can't have the stuff in the house. If it's here, it's like I have to eat it all until it's gone. If it's not here - I don't think about it. Insanity. My middle name.
Anyway, it's still cold and it's still raining and it's still crap. I need to watch a good movie and put cards together - my life for the moment. I don't think I have much to complain about, so why am I still here? Have a great day - whatever you're eating, whatever the weather.
Posted by Cara at 10:40 AM | Comments (11)
May 25, 2005
Not from a Jedi....
May 24, 2005. Mark the date. A momentus day in the history of Georgie and Cara. Yes, folks. The rumors are true. We actually went to the movies.
And, honestly, it wasn't that bad. For those keeping count, the last time we went to the movies was to see Bend It Like Beckham. The movie before that was My Big Fat Greek Wedding. (Which, surprisingly enough, were both out in 2002.)
Anyway. My point being, we NEVER go to the movies. NEVER. EVER. We HATE going to the movies. But, you know, it's Star Wars and all. At first, Georgie wanted to go to the theater where he saw the original but thankfully the times were bad. I'm pretty sure they haven't renovated it or anything. We're talking a lot of wear and tear on the seats people. So he came home from work a little early and we hit the 5:40 showing. The first nice surprise? That's a matinee! It only cost us $9.00, for both of us, instead of for one ticket. Next nice surprise - when we took our seats there were only three other people in the theater. Three. Sorry George Lucas. (When the movie finally started, we agreed there were fifteen people total in the theater - including us.)
The seats weren't bad. We were smack dab in the middle, a little closer to the front than the back. The theater was on an angle so people's heads didn't bother us. And you know, the movie ROCKED! Georgie's favorite part was when Anakin asks where he can learn these super duper new powers and Palatine turns to him and says, "Not from a Jedi...." mwahahahahahahahaha! Yoda kicks ASS! SPOILER ALERT!!!!! Apparently Samuel L. Jackson told Lucas that he was fine with dying as long as he went out cool. And it was DAMN COOL! I didn't think they used the Darth music to its full potential. I mean, c'mon, that's why I was there! Padme was just a vessel to get us Luke and Leia. (almost wrote Laura! Hahahaha!)
My favorite parts were anything having to do with Anakin turing into Darth - although I thought he was a bit naive, especially considering he's supposed to be the chosen one and all that. Anything with Yoda. And I love Ewan McGregor as Obi-Won - there's a picture in the little playbill book they gave out in the theater that shows how McGregor's face has the exact same symmetry as Alec Guiness.
What did I learn during the movie? That I don't like going to the movies. I had to pee the whole time. My seat gave me hemmorhoids. I was dying - DYING - to rewind - it was driving me crazy! But all in all it was a wonderful date - we had a very nice dinner after - and I'm happy we went to see it. In the theater.
The best part though was coming home and popping in Revenge of the Jedi and watching Darth Vader die in baby Luke's arms. Very, very cool. So in the end, I'm thanking George Lucas for endless hours of entertainment. We had fun!
Okay. Now I'm about to get really, really upset. Really upset. So be forewarned.
Speaking of people who provide entertainment, WHAT THE FUCK ARE THEY THINKING!!!!!!!! NBC is bringing out a new show called Inconceivable. Here's the description they provide for this bit of entertainment (and when you say that, say it like you're saying FUCK YOU! WE DON'T CARE ABOUT PEOPLE - ONLY MONEY!)
This delightful ensemble drama concerns one of the most complicated questions: to conceive or not to conceive. The doctors of the Family Options Fertility Clinic are on a noble quest to help desperate couples give birth. Except these doctors are often distracted by their personal quests involving sex, deception and secrets. Navigating through ultrasounds and super-egos, missing frozen embryos and impending malpractice suits, it's positively clear that life inside this clinic is anything but sterile. [Bold emphasis mine.]
(Please, make sure you watch the preview for the ultimate in fuck yous.) It's about, get this, the fun to be had in a FERTILITY CLINIC! Clearly, and I mean this sincerely, no one, not the crew, not the maintenance people, not the writing staff, not the producers, not the actors, NO ONE INVOLVED WITH THIS SHOW, has EVER dealt with infertility. Since when do pain, misery, hurt, shame, guilt, frustration, heartache, anger (should I go on?) make for enjoyable television? Oh, yeah, when you can make jokes about implanting the wrong embryos, having sex and I'm sure getting pregnant when your patients can't, and completely mis-educating the public about infertility. I'm laughing, this is so stupid. If you'd like to email NBC - do it here: nbcshows@nbcuni.com. I'll be sending an email, but I think I need to let the anger steep a little before it's good and ready to write what I need to write. I'm dumbfounded.
And if that doesn't get you upset, check out their new show, Thick and Thin. NBC. Must Offend TV.
Thanks for the link from Karen, via mamacate.
On to happier subjects, here's a mean ugly spider I hope bites Jeff Zucker in the ass:
Enlarge for super cool details.
Actually, this is for my rebel friend Kathleen who declared this week bug week. Who am I to argue? Look for a cuter, more friendly bug tomorrow! (Don't worry about Ann, Kathleen, I got your back!)
Posted by Cara at 09:00 AM | Comments (14)
May 24, 2005
Hello my friend. I've missed you.
Yesterday I did something I haven't done in (literally) years.
I read. All day. For hours. In fact, I read so much I finished my book. The Time Traveler's Wife was completed at 5:36 PM after reading off and on since about 10:30. I read about 400 pages. And I didn't fall asleep once (in fact, I was strangely energized.)
I'm not going to say much about the book, because I'll save that for the discussion over at K1R2 next Monday, but I cried my eyes out. The book, overall, was disturbing, and I don't think it was terribly well-written, but it certainly was captivating, and it certainly evoked a powerful reaction - which is pretty much what you're hoping for when you write. So I'd say it was a success.
For many, many years reading was my only obsession. I was the kid with the flashlight. I was never without a book (used to bring them on dates - kind of the way I do with my knitting now). Not being in the middle of a book resulted in crankiness and irritability. Even BUYING books was cause for celebration.
Things change, and in the last few years, especially since I've gotten so involved with my knitting, you could take the above paragraph and change books to yarn and you've got my life. So I'm very grateful to Audrey Niffenegger for giving me a taste of my past. I've missed it.
I did manage to knit a couple of rows on Clap-O-TEE AND, get ready, hold onto your handknitted socks, weave in a few ends on Short Rows. It was getting awfully crowded on the side and there was just NO MORE ROOM to weave in another end, so I tied a knot. Is that terribly, horribly awful? Just ONE TINY knot. It won't take away the complete and utter integrity of the piece will it?
I also did a bad bad thing. After I saw Meredith's spanking new fabulous purple socks, I had to have the yarn. So I bought two skeins - one in the to die for purple, and one in light/dark blue stripes. The yarn is Regia Cotton Surf and it is SO soft. I'm loving the idea of cotton sock yarn too. The problem? I've been wanting to try two socks on two circulars and they've given me ONE skein for two socks. And Meredith's stripes match up so nicely - I'm afraid to split the skein in half to have two balls, so I can do two socks at one time. Crazy, right? I should just do one freaking sock already! And Jen? Where were you? You're supposed to STOP me from buying sock yarn!!!
What I'd really like to do today is knit Clap-o-TEE until my hands fall off - I want this done so I can go back to Short Rows. I'm really missing it.
Hey! Has everyone seen Margene's Nothin' But A T-Shirt? A more perfect garment (especially for the owner) has NOT been knit. Go on over and show her the love! ;-)
Oh and speaking of showing the love, I want to thank everyone for their comments and emails about my photographs. Your appreciation of my work is beyond appreciated. It's hard to put yourself out there in the world - really hard. And the feedback is so encouraging. So, thank you!
Posted by Cara at 08:14 AM | Comments (22)
May 23, 2005
Charting A Course
And yes, I know I'm missing a WS knit stitch. Already fixed!
It's amazing how much fun you can have with some knitting software and excel. I basically ended up making up the symbols for the twists and cables (I copied the ones from the Harmony book - it's what I'm used to) and I'm pretty proud of my chart. Georgie thinks I'm crazy. (But hey, he was playing TENNIS all weekend, so what does he care what I do with my time? ;-) )
Even more fun than charting? Knitting up the swatch!
I changed some things from the last swatch, namely, made the small cable (the one in the middle that breaks up the two larger cables) a CB4 instead of a CB6 and there are now only two purl stitches between the big cable and the little cable. (Isn't it so convenient that the cables are small, medium and large!?!) I'm VERY happy with the third cable - the new one that everyone was SO HELPFUL with Friday night! I couldn't have done this without you!
And in true geek fashion, I've cut out a bunch of component pieces, if you will, so I can map out my plan for the back, fronts, sleeves. It's like a big puzzle!
In other knitting news, I worked on Clap-o-TEE through the weekend, with some extra special love time on Friday (that was my friend's birthday.) She hates to be reminded of it, so instead of calling her, I knit for her. Works out well, I think. I've now dropped 10 stitches, including the really long one that goes to the other corner (you all know what I mean, right?)
It's amazing how different this yarn looks in sunlight. Trust me - it positively glows.
What else, what else? We did a little more taking back the house, as G likes to call it, by cleaning out our little front closet with 451 gym bags. Now we only have 401 bags. Sentimental value and all. And while we were moving all the TVs around (because the big one in the living room is still broken and probably will be forever, unless the kind Sony people come on Wednesday and tell us that it really will be broken forever and then, I guarantee you, by midnight Wednesday night we'll have a brand new big TV) we watched this incredible storm roll through. We have windows in every room, big windows, all facing west. We also live in the middle of a swamp, so we get to see these great sunsets, and clouds, and storms. Well the storm came in about 7PM on Saturday and the clouds were amazing - you know how the air smells wet, before it even rains, and the gray light makes everything look clearer? The amazing thing - the sun was still out - far off on the horizon. The rains brought lighting and thunder and wind and all the while the sun was boldly setting. I didn't get the camera out because I don't think I would've captured it really and besides, I didn't want to leave the window where Georgie was hugging me and we were watching nature be poetic.
I also read a bunch of The Time Traveler's Wife. From a craft standpoint, this book has some serious flaws (what's the conflict, really?) and the author made one of my DREADED description mistakes on p. 175 - a mistake I love berating my students about. Want me to tell you what it is? The author uses a brand name as an adjective - for instance, a character is describing a room and says "It looks like an ad from Pottery Barn." There's only one way to describe this people - LAZY! The author is using "pottery barn" as an easy way out of describing the room, because she assumes that her readers will know what this means. Not only is she being lazy, but she's also damning her book to lose relevance within time. 100 years from now, no one will give a shit about Pottery Barn and an instant room will not pop into their minds so what are they to make of this? USE YOUR IMAGINATION writers! I understand how hard writing is, truly I do, but that's no excuse. If you're going to put your blood sweat and tears into this - don't take short cuts.
Okay. Rant over. Truly, I am enjoying the book. I easily read over a hundred pages in one sitting yesterday - something I haven't done in a long time. So it's all good.
Enough already. Back to your day. Thanks for stopping.
Posted by Cara at 10:35 AM | Comments (9)
May 22, 2005
Camouflage
Thanks Chelsea for a great idea and a great week! And thanks everyone else who participated. Flower Picture Week was oh so pretty and loads of fun!
Posted by Cara at 09:42 AM | Comments (6)
May 21, 2005
Saturday
Posted by Cara at 09:01 AM | Comments (4)
May 20, 2005
Roses are red...
Violets are blue,
Cables could suck
Without help from YOU!
Thanks for all the awesome chart help! Have a fantabulous weekend!
Posted by Cara at 09:28 AM | Comments (5)
May 19, 2005
HELP! I need somebody! Got it!
I found the cable I want to add to my pattern - it's perfect and the EXACT number of stitches I'll need for the saddle sleeve. What's the problem you ask? Well, I'll tell you.
I found it in the Barbara Walker Treasury #3 - the one with no patterns just charts - and I can't for the life of me figure out the pattern! I've read the chapters on reading charts a million times, looked at all the little stitch icons and all I see now are squiggly lines in front of my face. I'm desperate.
So here's the deal. I will give yarn and sheep cards (or flower cards, your choice) to the FIRST person who successfully translates this cable pattern for me. I can give you a picture of the cable, and a picture of the chart, but I can't give you all of the stitch icons. What I'm looking for is the pattern written out.
It's the cable on the right - called the Long Swinging Cable.
(Long Swinging Cable my ass!)
Don't you think it will be perfect with the other cables (see entry below)? Oh - it's on p.90 - Third Treasury.
Oh and all you Aran experts out there: it's normal that my dk weight yarn - which should give me about 5 stitches to the inch is giving me about 7.5 over the cable pattern, right? I think this is good - it should take more stitches - especially because of the twists.
Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!
Sarah from One Stitch Short got it to me first! Yeah Sarah! Thanks everybody for your help! I love knitbloggers!
Posted by Cara at 08:44 PM | Comments (7)
Bad Librarian
Sometimes, I gotta admit, I'm real happy to be out of the library world (are you ever REALLY out?) because, honestly, I think my head would explode.
Links courtesy Bookslut.
Posted by Cara at 12:44 PM | Comments (4)
Bohemia
I don't know if you've ever had this experience, but it's quite wonderful: Your mind is overflowing with ideas, they're rushing at you, unrelenting, confused, yet they all make sense, and you can see the end goal so clearly, as if it already exists in the world instead of your mind. I used to have this experience with my writing - I could see the words printed on the page before they ever left my head. I haven't had that in a long time. Apparently now I'm getting it with knitting. (Not sure I've ever had it with photography - wait - that's not true. It happens in the moment when I'm outside among the flowers. I see what I want. Sometimes I come back home and I didn't get it - and I will go back outside to reshoot. But it's never the same urgency as with the writing. Never the same, if I don't get this down RIGHT.THIS.SECOND. I will regret it for the rest of my life. How's that for pressure?)
Enter Bohemia - a name so lacking in originality it might just be original:
What's that you say? It looks like a swatch? Yes, just a swatch, but within this swatch holds the DNA if you will, the cosmic design, of an entire cardigan sweater. With saddle sleeves. And gorgeous wood buttons from Tender Buttons in NYC that haven't been purchased yet and will probably cost more than the yarn but are stunning. Stunning I tell you. And exotic. Made from something like coconuts or the backs of beetles. (Okay, yeah, I know. Neither coconuts or beetles are wood - but coconuts grow on trees and beetles eat trees - don't they eat trees? Indulge me people. I'm excited here!)
It may seem like a simple cable design (again, I'm stuck on this - can I call it design when really I'm just combining cables from the Harmony Guide to Aran Knitting?) but really it's everything I've been looking for. I've been wanting to do cables, because, you know, short rows haven't been challenging enough. No really, I've been wanting to do cables what with all the Alice Starmore floating around in the ether. But I don't want to do an AS design (BLASPHEMER!! tut, tut, tut!) because I know I'd never wear it. I bought some JS DK Silkroad Tweed in the Boheme color (because the two colors I have sitting at home just weren't right for this project) and immediately was inspired when it arrived. I thought maybe I'd use it for the Seed Stitch Cable Cardigan, but I started swatching it and didn't like it. So I started looking through my cable books. This one's too much. This one's not enough. And then I found it.
See it? The crisscross in the middle grows out of three C6Bs. So what better way to surround it but with C6Bs? So nice, right?
I really want saddle sleeves on this sweater. I just love the way the cable can travel over the shoulder - ever since I bought Ann Budd's book, I've known I was going to do a saddle sleeve cable sweater. So last night, while my swatch was nice and damp and sitting waiting to dry and be measured, I'm looking through the book and the measurements for the sleeve. My beautiful, lovely C6B into a twist is too big for the sleeve. Now, before you all come out of the wood work and tell me that I can change the pattern?!? please, let me live within my boundaries. I'm not changing the template pattern. It's hard enough I'm trying to make my idea into an actual THING. But it's all okay because I also realized that I'm probably going to need something else in the pattern anyway. Some kind of 10-12 stitch cable that will be perfect up the middle back and on either side of the front button holes. I won't have enough room to do two large cables (surrounded by two C6Bs), but I'll need to fill the space. Enter the new cable. I don't know what it is. But rest assured, I'll be pouring over the books today. Maybe I'll throw an AS cable in there anyway. It's possible. And for sure this new, yet to be discovered, beyond fantastic cable, will be traveling up my saddle sleeve!
Can anyone tell me - how do you chart on the computer? Is there software with all the little do hickies to make cables and twists, or do you make them up yourself?
God I hope this works out. I will be really, really disappointed if it doesn't.
In other knitting news, I'm completely bored by the Clap (hence the foray into Bohemia) and I am beyond missing short rows. My self-imposed exile (I WILL NOT START THE FRONT UNTIL THE ENDS ARE IN ON THE BACK!) is killing me - but I will not cave. I promise to weave in some ends today. And maybe start on the sleeve again. Oh yeah. I've got to do that Clap too. It's a gift. Birthday's Friday. It'll be late, but do I want it to be THAT late?
Speaking of late, I owe people. People, I know! Please forgive me! The gifts/contest winnings will be coming. They will! I swear. I'm trying to give you the bestest gift I can so I'm waiting a little while longer. Just know I haven't forgotten.
Wherever you are, whomever you're with, have a beautiful day!
Posted by Cara at 09:32 AM | Comments (10)
May 18, 2005
Git Yer Sheepy, Sheep, Sheep, Sheep
Due to popular demand PhotoArtCards is now offering the super duper deluxe Sheep & Wool PhotoArtCard Box!
 |  |  |
Each box contains 8 PhotoArtCards: two of each photograph.
$2.00 of the sale of each box will go to
Heifer International towards a Knitting Basket.
$20.00 Per Box
Price does not include tax or shipping & handling charges.
So run on over and git yer sheepy, sheep, sheep, sheep! But first, a little business. I use a third-party in order to accept credit cards. 2checkout.com acts as the store, so to speak, and I act as the supplier. So they process your credit card information, WHICH I NEVER SEE. They also take care of any disputes that may arrive, for the seller and the purchaser. I've found them to be a much better alternative to paypal. (I don't know of any 2checkout.com sucks web sites - let me know if they're out there though!)
I will keep a running tally of how much money has been collected for Heifer and the knitting baskets in my sidebar.
As each card is assembled by hand, please allow three weeks for delivery. Please let me know if you have any questions. Thanks!
PS - Thanks Ann for being my first customer! : )
Posted by Cara at 03:03 PM | Comments (4)
My Bleeding Heart
For Ann
Not much on the agenda today - some knitting, some photo stuff, some cleaning. Class went well last night. A good group makes all the difference. And I only had to do it for one night. No strings attached. I'm getting really excited about a couple of projects, one knitting, one knitting related. Hope to have more info in a couple of days.
While you're enjoying this Wednesday, please remember the important things in life. Like our freedoms. If you don't know what I'm talking about, ask Bill Moyers. (Thanks Mary and Kerstin for the link.)
Posted by Cara at 12:28 AM | Comments (8)
May 17, 2005
Substitute
Substitute me for him
Substitute my coke for gin
Substitute you for my mum
At least I'll get my washing done
I'm substituting tonight for a Fiction II workshop, so I've got work to do today. But I thought this was the perfect time to do the book meme that Lorette tagged me for a million years ago. (Sorry Lorette! I didn't forget, I just got stuck in my life!)
Q: You're stuck inside Fahrenheit 451, which book do you want to be?
Fahrenheit 451. A book about the dangers of the sublimation of independent thinking sounds good to me.
Q: Have you ever had a crush on a fictional character?
Oh sure. Robert Jordan. Rabbit Angstrom. The two guys are probably my biggest crushes. I don’t think Rhett Butler counts, as I read GWTW when I was eleven and I didn’t know then what to properly do with imaginary crushes. You can throw Howard Roark in the RB category as well.
Now if you want to talk about author crushes, well, they are legion.
Q: The last book you bought is:
I went on a mini-spree a couple of weeks ago. Borders was having a buy two get one free sale or some such thing so I bought: Pete Dexter’s Train, Sam Lipsyte’s Home Land and The Best American Short Stories: 2004, edited by Lorrie Moore. Then, as I was leaving the store, I found James Salter’s short story collection, Last Night. I LOVE James Salter. Really and truly love him.
Q: The last book you read:
Easter Parade by Richard Yates
Q: What are you currently reading?
The Time Traveler’s Wife by Audrey Niffenegger, for K1R2. (Don’t forget to vote!)
Q: Five books you would take to a desert island.
Don Quixote by Cervantes
So Long, See You Tomorrow by William Maxwell
Diary of a Seducer by Kierkegaard
Rabbit, Run by John Updike
The Brothers Karamazov by Dostoevsky
These are the five books that came to mind. Not sure why. Not sure I’d actually take them, but this is what came to me first.
Q: Who are you going to pass this stick to (3 persons) and why?
Whoever wants it, consider yourself tagged!
Posted by Cara at 07:26 AM | Comments (10)
May 16, 2005
HodgePodge
First off, for Chelsea, who wants me to post a flower a day for a week. (Okay, not just me, everybody! So join in the fun!) And for Lara.
Next up, we've got one you'll all know. I feel like it should be on Army Warning Posters by now - beware of pretty girls with the Clap!
Alchemy Yarns of Transformation Silk Purse, Sea of Cortez colorway. The color is much darker than I thought it would be, but I still like it. The silk is interesting to work with - very slippery and fuzzier than I thought - also, don't know if this is something that should be happening or not, but sometimes I find a spot in the yarn where the dye has not penetrated - you can see the white poking through. Normal? I don't really care, just asking. I've dropped three stitches so far and am almost through my second hank of yarn. I started with seven. Used one and change for the increases - I threw an extra repeat in there - and will probably end up going through the rest of the yarn. By the way, thanks Emma for the tip link - very helpful!
New favorite Children's Book:
Have you seen it yet? Don't Let the Pigeon Drive the Bus! by Mo Willems. Seriously, after reading this 479 times in three days, I actually miss it. It's a hoot, and the kids get to say their favorite word, over and over and over. NO! (This takes it's place of honor in my kids' books bookcase along with Bark, George, Rotten Island, and Duck Is Dirty. Classics all.)
I don't know about you, but whenever I look at this, I see the Grand Canyon times two:
Pinwheel avec holes.
I've been too heartbroken to pick it back up. I promise it will be fixed before I head back to my sister's - for my niece's second birthday. (She's having a Dora party don't you know. She so freaking cute. She LOVES Dora. She calls Dora Dodo. But if you say to her, is that Dodo? She freaks out. No, Dodo. Dodo? you say. NO, DODO. Poor girl. We're so mean!)
What's this?
Maybe something, maybe not, but you've got to try, right? We shall see.
Have a great Monday!
Posted by Cara at 08:43 AM | Comments (11)
May 15, 2005
From One Saturday to the Next....
My knight in shining armor drove down to Philly Friday night to pick me up - in the end though we didn't get in until Saturday - just after midnight. I had officially been gone more than a week. NOT the plan. Oh well. I'm home - things are falling apart (our TV in the living room, the big mofo, blew up on us last night. NOT what we need right now) - but I'm home.
It was a busy shopping week, to be sure. (I'm regretting some of my purchases in light of the TV situation, but what can you do!)
Here are some pictures from the festival that I finally got around to uploading. You want sheep - you got sheep!
I really didn't take many at all - the lighting inside the barns was pretty dismal and well, I just didn't try that hard. I'm pretty happy with these though.
And during the week there was face painting at the Zoo!
Saturday I had a brief, but intense blogger meet-up! The Wry Punster was in town for a show and I ran into the city to meet with her. The traffic was abyssmal, parking worse (should've NEVER taken the car in!) but as soon as Elspeth was in the passenger seat a spot opened up! Good parking karma if you ask me. We did a brief run through at School Products (I wasn't that impressed to be honest) and a religious experience at Habu. I managed to spend $100 in the fifteen minutes we were there! Seriously amazing stuff.
It's SILK. But it looks like snake-skin and is thick and not really soft at all. Like leather shoe laces, to be honest. I bought it with on of the bags in Loop-de-Loop in mind but there's no way I have enough. I don't know what I'll do with it. Look at it and go ahhhhhh. Really. That might be all I need. SILK! 100 Percent!
Elspeth - it was great to meet you - hopefully, if we do it again - it will be leisurely and quiet and not involve a Saturday at 29th Street. Hope the show was fantastic! (I'm sorry if I talked too much. After we split up, I felt like I talked too much. Maybe I was nervous?)
Want to see the other fibery goodness purchased this week? Keep reading....
From Maryland:
Brooks Farm Four Play
Brooks Farm Duet
FireSong Merino/Mohair
Blogger Gifts from
Peace Fleece, Brooks Farm and Cloverleaf Farms
A local LYS near my sister had a sale. I'm an ass. Along with the yarn, I bought some Addis for knitting two socks on two circulars. Yeah. We'll see. Someone help me.
Donegal Tweed for an Elizabeth Bag
Lorna's Laces Sock Yarn
And last but not least, the Jo Sharp DK Silkroad Tweed in the color I didn't get the last time - from Elann.
Anybody out there knit with Shine? I'm thinking it a cheaper alternative, since I can no longer afford Rowan Wool-Cotton. I've lost it for sure.
Posted by Cara at 11:24 AM | Comments (11)
May 13, 2005
Stuck!
At least when they decided to suspend train service between New Jersey and New York, I was on the train, which was sitting in the station in Philly. God help me if I had been out there somewhere in the middle of NJ with no idea when I'd get off the fricking train, and where I'd end up if I did. Even if I did have 4,629,871 yards of yarn with me. Literally. Remember, I don't lie.
My nephew, who cried when I left, was overjoyed that I came back. He'd still be hugging me if his mother didn't make him go to bed. I can't wait to see my niece in the morning - although she doesn't quite get it - when they all came home from taking me to the train station, Charlotte asked, "Where's Cara?" She's too cute for words.
Still, I miss my husband. I was supposed to go home Wednesday. And here it is Friday. I've been gone a week. AGAIN. I cried on the train when we made the decision that it was better for me to get off the train and go back to my sister's. This is not a reflection on my sister or her family. But you know. I miss my life. I miss my home. I miss my love.
And to make matters worse, when I was weaving in ends on the baby's Pinwheel Blanket, I truly and royally fucked up. I started out using my new favorite duplicate stitch method - but didn't like it in the end. So I pulled the ends out again (it was a new yarn join) and rewove them diagonally (it looked great), but when I got to one of the ends, I pulled out a little too much, or the wrong string, or who the hell knows what and after fucking withfixing it I managed to make two humongous holes. Right in the middle of the freaking blanket.
I have no idea how to fix it besides pulling out the cast off and dropping down the stitches to the holes, fixing it, then pulling the stitches back up the ladder. Tedious? Yes. Will it get me the result I want? Probably. So that's what I'll be doing. There was a chance that I would get some help tomorrow, but I won't be home in time.
I'm just about at the end of the increases on Clap-O-TEE. Yippee yi yo. Tomorrow, while I wait for some way to get home, I'll be starting the straight rows. Thanks for the advice on it, by the way. I got the answers I needed. I did manage to wind the next hank into a ball while waiting for Amtrak to decide that yes indeedy they were going to ruin my night.
I'll have pictures of the colossal fuck-up, the Clap-O-TEE, the tremedous weekend (and week - eek!) yarn haul and the absolute most adorable face-painted Spiderman and Miss Piggy you ever did see - that is if I get to go home sometime in the next million years.
Posted by Cara at 12:10 AM | Comments (9)
May 12, 2005
I Get By With A Little Help From My Friends
It feels weird to follow up such a serious post with of all things a knitting question, ; ) but that's what we're here for right?
So, I'm making Clap-o-TEE. I'm using Achemy Yarns Silk Purse. I have seven hanks - each about 138 yds. I've just about finished the increase section (as specified by the pattern), with less than a 1/4 of the hank still left - really it's not much. I could probably do another 12 rows of the increase section and finish off with the final six, and be done with the hank.
My question to all you Clap experts - what's the breakdown? If I were to use 2 hanks for increases, would three hanks be enough for the straight rows and two for the decreases? Will that make it too short? Do you use the same amount for increases as decreases? Should I try to do about a hank and a half for the increases? I'd like it to be pretty big. I was also thinking of just doing one hank each for the increases and decreases and if I have left over making some kind of little silk purse to match. What do you think of that? It's a birthday gift, by the way.
Thanks for any and info on the clap. I'm liking this pattern - I think it's going to be awhile before the pencillin kicks in.
Have a great day! We're off to the zoo! The REAL zoo, not the one it seems like I'm living in....
Posted by Cara at 09:19 AM | Comments (3)
May 11, 2005
Fast Times at Maryland High
or What Do You Care What Other People Think?*
There's been lots of talk in this wonderful world of knitblogs about inclusion, exclusion, friendships, tensions - it's palpable. I'd be lying if I didn't say I was thinking about it the whole time I was in Maryland.
Who did I want to meet? Who wanted to meet me? What if those lists didn't match? What if I wanted to meet someone that my companion didn't want to meet - was I obligated to stay with her? Would she ditch me for someone better? (Thank god for Jen - she's a confident as she is generous - she could've cared less that we split up here and there - now that's someone I want to spend time with! ;-) )
In the past four months I've been fortunate to have met a significant number of knitbloggers - in person - between my trip to Boston, The Yarn Harlot's visit to New York, Maryland - and every time it was exciting, and I believe I forged, or cemented, real, lasting TRUE LIFE, friendships. What more could I ask for in this blog world?
On the other hand, in every instance I had a nagging feeling of what am I doing here? That wallflower feeling so prevalent in high school - maybe you don't know it? Where everyone is talking to someone else and your stuck in the middle of a large room, club soda in hand, trying to look like you're thinking some great earth-shattering thought when really I'm just standing there alone feeling left out? How about those nagging thoughts like I KNOW everyone's going out afterwards - where's my invitation? They don't want me to come - they don't like me - blah, blah, blah.
Don't get me wrong. I'm not looking for people to stop in and leave me comments - we love you, we wanted you, you're the greatest girl in the world. I don't need it. Really. I don't want it this way either. I'm actually very confident and know exactly what my life is about. It's about loving and caring for my husband, my family. It's about being a generous and sympathetic friend. I'm a perfectionist in the worst way. I panic. I have anxiety. I am extremely goofy. I've lived for a long time thinking that if I've been hugged, laughed, and told that someone loves me, it's a good day - no matter how horrible it was otherwise. I love knitting and writing and taking pictures - sometimes in that order, and sometimes not. All in all, I'm a human being and human beings, no matter how much we endure, are emotionally frail. There's a reason we stop believing our mothers when they've told us eight million times how beautiful and wonderful we are.
I've also recently found out that I love my blog. It's given me something, frankly, I never really thought about. A community.
I'm a solitary person by nature. I'm a writer, and a loner and there's nothing I like better than sitting in my house and knitting. With Georgie in the next room - and if it wasn't for my niece and nephews - I'd never have to leave the house. When I started knitting it was in a void. My grandmother taught me one rainy afternoon - she gave me shiny metal needles and some day-glo orange Red Heart yarn. Three weeks later I had a baby blanket. Occasionally I'd go to a knitting shop to ask for advice, or I'd look on the Internet, but really, I was going it alone. I met Jen online in a completely non-knitting capacity - and because of our proximity, we became real-life friends - we've never had an online relationship really - but she was the one who introduced me to the blogs. I'd been wanting to document my projects for awhile - and that was really the main reason for starting my blog. The blog has single handedly gotten me writing again. Not necessarily what I'm meant to write, but writing nonetheless. And that can't be BAD.
Along with my perfectionism comes obsession (and really - find me a knitter who isn't obsessed) and it wasn't long before I was reading every knitting blog that I could find. Slowly I became a regular reader of many, and they started reading back and then I made friends. Real friends. Some I've met in real life, some I may never meet, but they are a comfort to me, they bring humor and fun into my life, and they support my knitting. This last one is really important because there is no one in my "real" life that knits. When I first met Jen, it was crazy. I'd call my sister and tell her - "She knits. And she doesn't mind going to every yarn store within a 25 mile radius. All in one day! I'm in love!" My sister is VERY grateful for you Jen.
Knitting and knit-bloggers by extension have opened up my life for me. I'm not one who likes to travel - as I said - I'd rather stay home. But lately, whenever Georgie brings up a place he'd like us to visit, my first thought is that there will be yarn stores there, and no doubt - knit bloggers. And that thought makes me feel like I could be comfortable anywhere.
Back to the whole tension thing: I've now met a good number of "famous" bloggers - and let me tell you they've seemed as uncomfortable with their "fame" as the people approaching them. Blogging is a dichotomy - in many instances it's an intensely private journal that just so happens to have a very public face. At least it is for me. I shouldn't presume to talk for others. But I can say this, for the bloggers I've met in person it's been true for me that if I like your blog, I can pretty much say that I like you as well.
What was especially nice about Maryland was that I met bloggers whose blogs I'd never really read before. It was because I got to spend time with them that I will now follow their blogs - they are friends. There were also hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of people at the festival. It was impossible to meet everyone you wanted to meet - it was overwhelming in so many ways. I'm honestly worried about Rhinebeck. There are too many people I'd like to spend time with - and not all of these people will overlap, I'm afraid. You've all had this experience, I'm sure. Friends from different walks of life, different ages, different backgrounds, different sensibilities. The dinner party where you bring everyone together and after five minutes you want to crawl in a corner. Chemistry is like lightning - you can't control where it strikes. I'm afraid that the only thing that really connects these groups is me. And knitting. Narcissistic and tenuous at the same time. How's that for being bold? I'm feeling pressure already to please all of the people all of the time. What to do? I don't know. I'll figure it out later. Inevitably, someone will be hurt (I'm talking generally here.) And to that I say tough. That's life. I try to keep in mind always - there's always going to be someone better off than me, and someone worse off than me. Perspective is necessary.
This is a long rambling post and it's late and I'm tired running around with the kids all day. But I wanted to get this stuff off my chest because I've been thinking a lot about it. And after all - it's my blog. I can do what I want with it. You don't have to read it. Heck, I don't have to read it.
I will end with this: I am the same no matter where I am, or who I'm with. I'm one of those people incapable of lying, so I can't put on a persona to save my life. If I'm enthusiastic, it's true. If I'm sad, it's true. If I don't like you, well, I'll become very polite and end the conversation as soon as possible. If I'm your friend, I'm like the loyalest of dogs. You will not get rid of me unless you beat me over the nose with a wet newspaper too many times to count. I mate for life. I'm a swan. This is me. This blog is me, and if you've met me in person I can tell you that what you see is what you get. Take it or leave it.
Self-Portrait, November 2002
* Richard Feynman never cared a stitch what other people thought of him. He's a personal hero.
Posted by Cara at 12:26 AM | Comments (25)
May 09, 2005
The Sheep! The Wool!
The Bloggers!
What a weekend! I learned quite a bit about myself - it's funny really. One of the things I learned is that I'm not a casual picture taker - there are a few pictures to be sure, but only when I thought I could get something that met my (very) high standards. (You should know, these are standards I set for myself, not anyone else. I have an ideal photograph in my brain that I'm constantly striving for - it's like that ideal story that never actually makes it to the page, even though it's sloshing around my brain ALL THE TIME!) The few pictures I have will have to wait anyway - I'm down in Philly until Thursday it seems and I won't be able to process them until I'm back. So this post is commentary only - feel free to skip it if you're totally sick of Maryland and anything having to do with Sheep or Wool.
Jen picked me up Friday afternoon and after a brief panic attack on my part, we were merrily along the NJ Turnpike. We hit minimal traffic and Jen successfully maneuvered us to the Sheraton Columbia. We were both pretty beat (thanks Jen for the newly pregnant and exhausted excuse - wouldn't want people to think I was a wuss ;-) ) so we climbed into our pjs and watched some TV (Gilmore Girls!) and chowed down on Keebler Iced Animal Crackers, Craisins (the cherry kind), almonds and anything else that wasn't bolted to the wall. No sooner could you say Gyro and we were hungry again. We headed out to the mall across the street and shopped a little bit (can you believe it?!? With all that wool to be bought?) and then headed over to a personal favorite, PF Changs. A 2.5 HOUR FREAKING WAIT! Take-out is our friend. Pay-per-view is another friend. Asleep by 12:00.
It's been a very long time (not sure I can remember the last time) that I shared a room with someone who wasn't my husband or my relative. Jen was a superlative roomate. She brought along great snacks, had cute PJs (with sheep on them!), didn't mind eating in and was an extremely quiet sleeper. I was blow drying my hair Saturday morning thinking just that - wow - I didn't even hear her breathe - when she said to me - "You're a really quiet sleeper." Hey Jen - maybe we should ditch those snorers we're currently sleeping with!
Saturday morning we were on our way about 8:40. We would've been to the festival by 9:00, except everyone, and I mean EVERYONE, was also on their way. We stood in a slow caravan to an open field, parked the car and headed off. Jen was over the moon after the first lamb bleet - me, not so much. I'm not a real animal person, to be honest. I thought the sheep were interesting - made some funny noises, but mostly they gave me a headache as I was walking through the stalls. Is that sacrilege? I'm sorry, but I'm nothing if not honest.
So we walk down this big hill past some barns and then we're there - in the thick of it. When we arrived at 9:08, the line to buy t-shirts was like 45 minutes long. Apparently everything that anyone would want was gone by 9:15. I did manage to get a t-shirt that I'm very happy with. (I'm wearing it right now - third day in a row - how gross is that? I'm not taking it off until Rhinebeck.) I would've loved the oh so cute hoody that Lara took home, but that's what I get for dillydallying in the yarn barns.
The one thing that really overwhelmed me was the smell of lamb cooking. It was scrumptious! My husband is Greek - so lamb is comfort food in my extended family. In fact, just last weekend we had some exceptional lamb for Greek Easter (from Niman Ranch if you're interested.) Anyway, it all smelled wonderful - although I have to admit, carnivore that I am, it was kind of weird to have the lambs in the barn and the kebobs on the bbq right next door. Still, it didn't stop me from a fantastic lamb on a roll sandwich. Mmmmmm.
Apparently, I shop for yarn the same way I shop for everything else. I'm an in and out kind of girl. If I don't see it immediately, I'm gone. And I can scope a room in like 10 seconds and know if it's there or not. In my mind I KNEW what I was looking for - yarn that I couldn't find anywhere else. Handpainted. Super soft. Unique. Something special. Alright. You can stop laughing now.
We hit Brooks Farm early in the day, so there wasn't a line to buy anything. Not only was their yarn possibly the nicest I saw all day, but they were by far the nicest vendors. Funny, accomodating, polite - even at 5PM on Saturday with their stock half gone. Kudos to you! In the morning, I bought five skeins of Four Play - four for me, and one for a SP4 Angel gift. I'm planning on making a shawl that I saw hanging in the booth - it's from The Purl Stitch book. Ingenious pattern - four rows of garter stitch on size 6 needles, two rows stockinette on size 10s - repeat until end. So simple, yet so elegant.
After walking around the festival for eight hours and hitting almost every booth twice, I managed to find myself back at Brooks Farm. I hit them up for 1500 yds of Duet. Lara and Chelsea were my handy enablers on that purchase. Thanks girls! This yarn might be my favorite purchase of the day.
I made almost all of my purchases before the 12:30 knitblogger meet-up. I kid you not. Besides the Brooks Farm, my main purchase was some gorgeous 55% mohair, 45% merino from FireSong - the colors are amazing. Rusts, oranges, and an amazing gray/blue running through. I hope a photograh can capture it. I bought 1380 yds. I'm hoping for a cardigan.
I made some gift purchases at the Peace Fleece booth - some handpainted needles and the Everday Cardigan pattern for myself. And more gift purchases at Cloverleaf Farms. I also bought something special for Vicki - it was the first purchase of my day and has nothing to do with wool or sheep or spinning or knitting. Imagine that! But it called out to me, "Vicki, Vicki, buy this for Vicki!" So how could I resist.
I have to admit, by the end of the day I had just a twinge of buyer's remorse (it seems like I kept buying the same colors over and over) and I would've loved to have lived like Jenny - she felt like she couldn't buy anything without a project in mind to go along with it. Words to live by. Also, as with any shopping experience, the less crowds the better. I also had this feeling like if I didn't buy it RIGHT THIS SECOND I'd never see it again. There was an urgency to the whole day that didn't bode well for keeping track of your purchases. I'll be smarter next time.
Walking around was quite the experience - one minute I'm completely engrossed in the yarn, the next minute I'm searching the crowds for familiar faces. The blogger meet-up was a great success and continued on throughout the day. I met Carrie, High Energy Jenny, Anne Marie, Lara, Chelsea, Sarah, Sarah, Dana, Joy, Kaitlyn, Christine, Anmiryam, Eilene, and about a million others - I'm sorry I don't remember everyone's name - but I do remember Donna's incredible Calmer Mariah. I've been dreaming about it. Really.) Lots and lots of fun - everyone!
Carolyn and I met up briefly and she gave me a yarn gift - so appropriate! - for knowing what/who FFFB were. Thank you Carolyn! I feel like I didn't get a chance to thank you right - and we barely had time to talk. And Norma was there! Norma gave me the biggest hugs of the day - except for maybe Lolly - but I'm blowing Norma's cover. She acts all tough on her blog - throwing around the Fbomb all day long - but she is the sweetest! A total sweetheart - the biggest smile each time I ran into her. And Norma, your hair looked to me to be the perfect shade of blonde. ;-)
Some of my favorite moments of the day:
- Wandering around with Carrie - especially in the sheep barns. We were standing next to this one sheep who had an especially deep bleet - I mean bottom of the barrel James Earl Jones bleet. I was saying to her, "Hey - this sheep has a really deep..." And then BLEET. (Read it like an incredibly fat man belching a six pack.) Carrie about jumped into the stall next to her. Very, very funny.
- Standing in line for lamb meat with Lara and Chelsea. That Lara is a hoot and a half. I had such a fun time with both girls. Just so nice - totally the people you want to stand in line with while waiting for lamb. Or deciding what color Brooks Farm looks best.
- Getting a call from no-voice Lolly while roaming the fairgrounds and saying - where are you? where are you? and walking right into her! I'm so glad we got to hook up! I know it was a rough weekend for you and I'm grateful I got the chance to give you a hug! Hope you're feeling better.
- Sitting on the grass swapping stories with other bloggers, eating lamb. Oh yeah. The Harlot was close by as well.
- Checking out the dog shepharding demonstration with Jen and Carrie. (Really it was sitting around on the grass chatting afterward....)
- The ride home with Jen - going over the day, planning for Rhinebeck - having her meet my babies. I'm so glad you got to see them! Aren't they the cutest?!? Could you totally feel the love?
There wasn't much I didn't love, love, love!
Things I learned for Rhinebeck:
I won't be spending the same money on yarn. I will have projects in mind. I will stay for the whole festival. I will socialize more (dinners, after hours parties - since I won't be worrying about the shopping, I can sleep in!) I will (try to) take more pictures. I will eat more lamb. Seriously. It was damn good lamb.
There was some kind of bad news. No matter how safe I tried to be, I couldn't help but catch it - I mean there were knitbloggers every where! It was probably airborne. Yeah. You know it. I caught The Clap. Pictures to come. It's not pretty (it's actually gorgeous!)
Posted by Cara at 01:22 AM | Comments (25)
May 06, 2005
Gone Knittin'
They didn't come out as I'd hoped, but oh well! I tried!
Look for us!
Have a fabulous weekend everyone! Happy Sunday to all you mothers out there. The camera WILL be along for the ride ;-) but it may be awhile before you see anything. I'm stopping in Philly on my way back for a visit with my favorite kids. (By that time I'm sure you'll all be good and sick of MDSW stories....)
Posted by Cara at 11:03 AM | Comments (7)
May 05, 2005
Wild Geese that Fly with the Moon on Their Wings...
Posted by Cara at 09:58 AM | Comments (13)
STOP!
I don't care what you're doing, just stop. Redirect your browser to this. Jenifleur has single-handedly restored my faith in humanity. And for that, I thank her.
See you on the dark side....
Posted by Cara at 09:23 AM | Comments (0)
May 04, 2005
All that drama...
for three rows of seed stitch!
DUH!!!!
It's elegant. It's organic to the knit. It's perfect.
I must have tried (literally) four or five different edging options. In the end three rows of seed stitch (with pattern appropriate yos) and binding off in seed stitch did the trick! Thank you all so much for your suggestions. I'm so glad it's finished. I think it's perfect for a little boy - it has that perfect Linus quality - it's soft - and I can only imagine it will get softer and softer with love - and I can just see Baby Eli dragging it behind him in a year or two, needing it to sleep at night, comforting him when he's sad. Eli, honey-pie, Aunt Cara loves you so, so, so MUCH!
I'll be delivering it to him this weekend (and pictures will come.) First, though, I need to weave in the few ends and give it a good wash (don't forget the crazy lady on the train who stole it out of my hands. EWWW!) Any washing suggestions for All Season's Cotton? It needs to be blocked a little too - the seed stitch is a nice flat border but still - doesn't everything need to be blocked? I have some of that Eucalan stuff, but I'd really like to try washing it in the washing machine. I told my sister it was machine washable and she almost cried so I'd hate to have lied to her.
All Season's Cotton!
Now that I'm finished, I still have 13 skeins of ASC in the discontinued color Tapestry. Ten of those skeins are still in the bag. Smoke free, in plastic, perfect skeins. Anybody want to trade? Or buy them off me?Secret Pal IV
I want to thank Alyx (I was her pal) and Kirsten (she was my pal) for making my first Secret Pal experience so much fun. Alyx introduced herself to me with a gift certificate to Elann! Now that's my kind of meet and greet. It was great to be spoiled and to the spoiling. Thank you both so much!Sofa Knitting
Isn't this an olympic sport? Summer, winter - it'll fit anywhere! Jen and I were training yesterday - on her brand new couch. We've been friends for almost a year and I think we've actually knit together TWICE. (Jen - don't forget knitting at the DMV!)Let me tell you. I need the training. I tried rather unsuccessfully to start a swatch for the Seed Stitch Cable Cardigan. (Look how beautifully Toni's is coming along!). I was trying to swatch for it in Wool Cotton but had A LOT of trouble reading the freaking chart. First it was backwards - the stitches started on the LEFT of the chart (this isn't normal is it? - you knit from the right, don't you?) It started with a WS row and basically I just fucked it up. Not once, not twice, but three times. Then I gave up. Maybe I want to do this in the CashCotton instead? Not sure - I want it to be a really fabulous cardigan. Anyway, I gave up and went back to weaving in ends on Short Rows. I'm determined to get the ends in on the back BEFORE I start on the front - I'm really missing this knit too! I might cast on for Clapotis now too. I need to get going on that - since my friend's birthday is May 20. It will be late. No doubt about it.
By the way, Jen was knitting up some of this worsted merino. (WEBS sells it under the Malabrigo name - for more than twice the price.) It's similar to Manos - but OH.MY.GOD. this shit is the softest stuff I have ever felt in my life. Jen's making a soaker and let me tell you - make me an adult one! I'd love my bare ass next to that stuff. Seriously. Crazy soft.
We watched a movie - Raising Helen. The movie was eh but there was knitting content. Joan Cusack plays the Martha Stewart wanna be mom and in one scene she's sitting on the couch with her husband, knitting, and they're watching tv. She says to him, "See, all the celebrities are knitting now." Kind of funny, but later, a Jaguar pulls into their driveway and the Cusack character says to her husband "Who do we know that drives a Jaguar?" and the husband says, "Maybe it's a celebrity coming to knit with you." Pretty funny. Funniest part of the movie - so really, don't bother.
Thanks Jen! For a very, very nice afternoon. (Next time - my house, Sense & Sensibility. Be there or be square! Oh and I promise to get the good cookies!)
Posted by Cara at 10:30 AM | Comments (19)
May 03, 2005
Maryland Meet-up - Sunday Version
It's come to my attention that there are quite a few of you out there who won't be attending Maryland on Saturday, so I'm putting up a Sunday meeting in the sidebar. If you'd like your name there, let me know!
Since I won't be there on Sunday, I'm going to set that same meeting time. 12:30PM, Building 1 (where they're selling the t-shirts.)
Have a great day everybody!
Thanks!
Posted by Cara at 08:43 AM | Comments (5)
May 02, 2005
When the Dog Bites, When the Bee Stings....
I've been in a wicked funk the last week (no biggie - it happens - it's on the way out) so I've been concentrating on Vicki's tag.
Ten of My Favorite Things
1. Georgie's hands on my back before we fall asleep at night. It helps him, and it helps me.
2. Max, Charlotte and Elijah Lew.
3. Any song or book or movie or tv show that elicits a STRONG reaction - whether it be tears or laughter or tugs at my heart. I'm all for emotion. Even when it hurts. Means your alive.
4. Georgie and I in the car, singing at the top of our lungs, stereo blasting, laughing our heads off.
5. It's rare to find a beach I couldn't be happy on. The surf has an incredibly calming effect.
6. My home. Especially when Georgie's home with me. Just knowing he's in the house.
7. Being completely engaged so that time stops and speeds up together. Whether I'm taking pictures or knitting or writing. Especially writing. There's not much better than coming out of being in the zone and finding you've got five pages in front of you that you don't remember writing. I get it when I'm shooting kids and flowers too - but not always. And you certainly don't always get it when you're writing. But the rare times you do - WOW!
8. The friendship I have with my sister. I can tell her anything - no judgments. And she knows my whole history (well, there were 18 months when she wasn't around ;-) ).
9. Kisses and hugs. Lots and lots of kisses and hugs.
10. Knowing that the love of my life thinks I'm the love of his life.
Georgie and I had a good weekend together. I had a good cry and he listened and helped me and I'm feeling a lot better. Can you tell? ;-)
Oh and number 11! Knit One Read Too. We now have over 150 members - can you believe it? And our third discussion starts today - so head on over and be a part of it.
Who am I going to tag? Let's see. How about Annie, Lolly and Wendy (where've you been girl?)!
Harlots Everywhere!
I'm happy to annouce that Cari from Iowa has won a signed copy of the Harlot's Book! Cari, email me your address and I'll get it out into the mail. Thanks for playing everybody!More Maryland Meet-ups
Joy and I have been talking after our serendipitious meeting Thursday night. It seems she and Kaitlyn are putting together a Friday night bash at the Wharf Rat in Baltimore! Click on the Jack Daniel's bottle on Kaitlyn's blog for the evite and all the details. Thanks for planning this girls!Opinions Please!
This is the border I have going so far. (Doesn't it look like a sad kitty cat? Not liking that by the way!) One thing I've learned in the experiment called BORDER THAT'S SLOWLY KILLING ME! is that binding off and picking up the stitches gives a MUCH nicer border than attaching it by doing a k2tog at the edge. Now, this is the border (sort of) I had in mind. Georgie likes it - thinks it looks like the sun. Me, I'm torn. I think a simpler border might be better - this might pull away too much from the loveliness that is the pinwheel. I've looked through Nicky Epstein's Knitting on the Edge about 452 times and can't find what I want. (In looking for a link, I see she's got another edge book coming out. Maybe I should wait for that. The kid won't know any different. NO! I want this FINISHED!) Any and all suggestions (and opinions on what I've got here) would be greatly appreciated!
Have a great Monday!
Posted by Cara at 09:38 AM | Comments (14)