Happy Birthday, Mom!

Taking Tuesday off has completely thrown off my calendar. I missed a meeting last night and worst of all, I completely spaced my mother's birthday today until I saw the date on the calendar!! Argh! I'm a terrible daughter. Happy Birthday, Mom!

 

OTOH, we spent the day together on Tuesday watching the Inauguration. I approve of Michelle Obama's Inauguration Day dress. I'm sure she'll be so relieved. Not so fast, my First Lady! Your ballgown wasn't as beautiful, mostly because the lights made it impossible to really see it and she looks better in classic lines rather than frou-frou. Forget the adorable flubbing of the oath,the closing of Gitmo, what the Obamas really need to do is take a couple of dance classes. Her dress was a little too long.

 

I must have Aretha Franklin's hat.

 

Regardless of your political leanings, the Inauguration was amazing. The crowds at the Mall! The parade! I thought it was disrespectful of both the new President and the citizenry that most of those in the Presidential parade stand bailed quickly, but it did look like there were gale force winds ripping through it. It might have been a wee bit cold in the Mall too. I hope this truly does usher in an era where people "....are not judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."

 

As you might have guessed, I opted to watch from the comfort of my couch, thankfully. Flipping between all of the cable news stations and a couple of local ones to see how the locals were taking it, I think I managed to get a nice close up and detailed coverage. The parade did me in though it was Mom's favorite part. She loves a parade.  I could only handle watching four of the TEN Inaugural Balls. What an exhausting day. And yes, I'm talking about watching it.

 

I did manage to knit more on the Curve of Pursuit but didn't finish it or even the square I'm on. They went much faster in the beginning. Hmmm.  

 

Dad's cardigan? The sleeve gauge is way too tight so I had to rip it out and pick up some bigger circs (and who knew that saying "I need to buy some circs" would be so confusing to some people?) which is good news  because the yarn will go farther.

 

Your Word is "Think"

You see life as an amazing mix of possibilities, ideas, and fascinations. And sometimes you feel like you don't have enough time to take it all in. You love learning. Whether you're in school or not, you're probably immersed in several subjects right now. When you're not learning, you're busy reflecting. You think a lot about the people you know and the things you've experienced.

What's Your Word?

 

Is that not a great word? And from Chris from Stumbling over Chaos: 

 

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Dedicated Reader You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.
Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
Book Snob
Literate Good Citizen
Non-Reader
Fad Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

No fad reading at all? I read The Da Vinci Code and Harry Potter. At least a couple of them. OTOH, I haven't read Twilight or The Historian or ..........I  can't even think of any other bestsellers.

Christmas! The Season of Creatures of the Night

At least that's how Christmas generally feels to me. They take a perfectly lovely time where it's dark early and cold, a time when sitting in front of the fireplace and knitting and reading would be the sensible thing to do and insist on throwing all these parties and ceremonies and then the gifts that you must bestow on your loved ones - all your loved ones - and they'd better reflect both your love and the recipient's taste. Gah. (Note: this does not actually mean that I do all this, I just feel the pressure to do all this. It's possible I haven't sent out Christmas cards since........I'm not sure I've ever managed to send out Christmas cards. I know I did once in March. In the 80's).

The best part of Christmas? All the baked goods.

Wow. If Typepad "improves" any more, I'm not going to be able to blog at all.

Witness the SNOW on Mt Diablo! Half the mountain is behind the clouds, that's a really low snow level for us. 

And speaking of creatures of the night: (I'd been thinking of the unstirring mouse, myself), from Stumbling Over Chaos:

Which creature of the night are you? Your Result: Cthulu Spawn You are really an alien thing, aren't you? I can't describe you because you are beyond. We say "left field" and you say "Krn Grth Thchrang." You are the wild card of the bunch, the unknown quantity
Demon
Werewolf
Sorceror
Vampire
Incubus/Succubus
Ghost
Which creature of the night are you? Quiz Created on GoToQuiz

Knitting update! Sleeve Island. I think I'm marooned on sleeve island. Hey. Progess. Who knew? Christmas knitting has turned into birthday knitting, or abandoned altogether (see, that's what happens when your birthday ISN'T around the holidays. You don't get it at all.)

I've finally found something to read, Vicious Circle by Mike Carey, chronicling the adventures of exorcist Fix Castor. But since it's a hardback, my walkaround book is Anne Neville: Queen to Richard III by Michael Hicks, a biography of Richard III's queen. I went through about 15 books without one catching my interest for awhile there. Book update to come, probably in the year end wrap up. Also: IT IS TOO EARLY TO DO A BEST OF 2008! It's not over yet!

I feel the pressure to fill in all this blank space. OTOH, it's cold, it's - sort of early, my bed still isn't made, I think I'm going to crawl back into it and knock out a few rows. Wonder who's on BookTV this weekend?

From Mindfull:

You Are an Argyle Sweater

You are contemplative, brainy, and serious. You don't take much lightly - life is too important for that. You are a very determined person. You don't let anything stand in your way. You think out your actions and act deliberately. You don't waste time, money, or resources .

What Kind of Sweater Are You?

Clearly I cheated on this one. Wasting time, money and resources is one of my favorite occupations.


Hez sez "I am Queen of all I survey! Look on my works ye mighty and despair!" Maybe it was Ozymandias who said that. Hard to say.

I Finished A Sweater! Naturally There Will Be No Photographic Evidence

  Birdsong from A View from Sierra County tagged me with the Sixth Picture meme...

The directions are:

*Go to your sixth picture folder and pick your sixth picture.
*Pray you remember the details.
*Tag five others.

The directions didn't include pesetering your tagger to explain the concept of picture folders but after that was clear to me, I realized that I did - sort of - have picture folders. Just not enough pictures in folders six or seven (I had three pictures in folder six, thought I'd skip the canned picture folder and try seven - I had one in that one. Whoops.) So I picked the sixth picture from My Pictures.

And that picture is the result of the artistic vision of Chris Cobb going hog wild with 20,000 volumes of used books at Adobe Bookstore in San Francisco back in 2004. (All independent and other booksellers are now cringing in horror and recognition. "Do you know the name of a book I read [eons ago] at [miles away]? The cover was green. [said more hopefully than helpfully])") (NPR piece)

Selfishly I will tag the people whose pictures I love, MrsPao of Mumblings, Felicia of Fluffy Flowers, NeedleDancer of Knitting in the Shadows, Marina at Stranded on Fair Isle, and Bookfool.

Found at Anne's:

Your result for The Who Would You Be in 1400 AD Test...

The Harlequin

You scored 37% Cardinal, 46% Monk, 38% Lady, and 38% Knight!

You are a mystery, a jack-of-all-trades. You have the king's ear, but also listen to murmurings of the common folk. You believe in the value of force and also literature. Truly you are the puzzlement of the age.

Take The Who Would You Be in 1400 AD Test at HelloQuizzy (picture fromPeople Play UK - Harlequin in England).

I'd post the pictures of my progress on the Curve of Pursuit - I'm starting to use a skein in each quarter, the miniscule yet steady progress on Mary Tudor, the basic box shawl that I've gotten an awful lot done at stoplights  -  the UNBELIVEABLY completed Lace Edged Elegance, but as it turns out, somewhere in the move, I've lost my camera cord. Grrr.

  Like many others, I was shocked and saddened to hear about Dewey. I piocture her happily at the base of a mountain of To Be Read books but I still can't wrap my head around the awful news.

Nerissa (the niece) says "Everyhing can be helped with the help of one's sloths." I think she takes after my side of the family.

Quizzes and Babbling

Found at Knitting in the Shadows:

Yoda A venerated sage with vast power and knowledge, you gently guide forces around you while serving as a champion of the light. Judge me by my size, do you? And well you should not - for my ally is the Force. And a powerful ally it is. Life creates it, makes it grow. Its energy surrounds us, and binds us. Luminescent beings are we, not this crude matter! You must feel the Force around you, everywhere. Yoda is a is a character in the Star Wars universe. More Yoda information is available at the Star Wars Databank.

Feather and Fan Shawl no longer. Frogged and is starting life over as the Lacy kerchief Scarf.
(Ravelry link. Otherwise found in Interweave Knits Summer 2005 or Holiday 2006. Since it's for me, it's started life very slowly. I have startitis. It had to be done.

I'd actually forgotten about shawl totally though, I found it while tossing my stash for some short circs.

Holiday gift knitting continues VERY, VERY slowly. Nothing like giving myself a deadline to kill all interest in knitting something.

Mindless public knitting is going gangbusters though.

What my blog name says about me, according to Typealyzer:

ESFP - The Performers

The entertaining and friendly type. They are especially attuned to pleasure and beauty and like to fill their surroundings with soft fabrics, bright colors and sweet smells. They live in the present moment and don´t like to plan ahead - they are always in risk of exhausting themselves.

The enjoy work that makes them able to help other people in a concrete and visible way. They tend to avoid conflicts and rarely initiate confrontation - qualities that can make it hard for them in management positions.

Oh absolutely. I'm always at risk of exhausting myself. Avoiding conflicts. Yes, that's exactly right. When I'm not gently guiding the force and serving as a champion of the light.

Speaking of mindless public knitting, I needed a smaller (more discreet) project to knit at a function than the Curve of Pursuit was getting to be (BIG), so I pulled out the Veronica yarn from Dizzy Blonde Studios and started (again) The Basic Black Shawl from Cheryl Oberle's Folk Shawls. This is my approximately 18th thousand attempt at this shawl, for some reason, the yarn is either too thick, too thin, too ......something. Hopefully Veronica is just right. She certainly was just right to fit in my purse and get toted along all day. The picture doesn't do much justice to the pattern but it does display the colors pretty well.

TV has been a vast disappointment to me lately. Now that I know My Own Worst Enemy has been cancelled, I can't bring myself to stay up and watch the last few episodes. On the Sarah Connor Chronicles, Jon Connor continues to be a doofus and evidently no one around him is actually from his own time or human. How bad is it when I just can't wait for the machines to rise and take them all out?

Heroes is confusing. Am I to understand correctly that they intend on bringing more new people in next year?

What's good........well, NCIS, of course. I still like The Mentalist even though the plot leaps were fairly enormous last night. Bones tonight on Fox, Life at 9pm oon NBC and the season finale of Sons of Anarchy tonight (Wednesday 11/26)at 10pm.

24 on Fox sunday - athough doofus that I am, I missed the beginning episode. Luckily, it's showing online. But mostly I've been reading. It's that time of year!

And from The Ravelle'd Sleeve:

Your Hair Should Be White

Classy, stylish, and eloquent. You've got a way about you that floors everyone you meet.

What's Your Funky Inner Hair Color?

 

Does this look comfy? It's Hez's new sleeping spot (when she's not suffocating me or rendering me incapable of using my legs).

 

Hez sez, "Phhttt. Happy Thanksgiving! And Happy Thursday to those not granted a day off of feasting (or who've already had it)."

Love and Apples

From Knitting in the Shadows (now that we actually have rain - Yay!. Check out her recent vacation pictures to St. Thomas)

What Your Black Umbrella Says About You

When faced with adversity, you respond with authority. You don't let problems faze you. You are naturally powerful and commanding. People look to you to take charge. You are elegant and classy. You know how to always say and do the right thing. While you stand out, you also fit it. You thrive in a variety of situations. On a rainy day: you carry on as normal - a little bad weather isn't going to get in your way !

The Umbrella Test

Well, far be it from me to contradict any quiz that says I'm elegant and classy but there was no leopard print umbrella to check, which is what I own. I'm far more likely to slap on my safari rain hat anyway. I like to have both hands free.

There's more progress on the sleeve of Mary Tudor than this picture shows but moving (the office) has kind of sapped me. 60 boxes. And the stupid elves haven't shown up to finish the job yet either. Gah.

Having an opposable thumb is not all that it's cracked up to be either. It's either arthritis or I've strained it? Who knows. I can knit, but I can't really play on the computer for long - and not having a computer at work hasn't helped much either. That's where all the lifting stuff happens. 

Hezekiah officially hates the rain. She insisted on going outside on Saturday even though I told her we were moving the office and I wouldn't be home all day and it was POURING. She was drenched and mad as a wet hen by the time I got home.

So today I insisted she stay inside. When I got home she wanted outside via  the garage door,  the sliding glass door to the backyard and the front porch.

Can you believe it? IT WAS RAINING OUTSIDE OF ALL THREE DOORS. The horror.

This is Nerissa, my new niece. Isn't she darling?

Last week, a box  came in the mail from KnitThink.
Inside the box - many many apples (and popcorn, although not nearly as edible).

I can see why people love apples now! They were crunchy! There was this wet stuff - my mother - who is from Michigan and wise and knows these things -  said that it was called "juice". It was a revelation. I still have to think of something wonderful in return.

No wonder people eat an apple a day to keep the doctor away. I wonder what four a day will do?



I've been working on the beaded scarf that The Fairy Godknitter sent me and swatching for the Veronica yarn from Dizzy Blonde Studios. While sorting my UFO's I found my half done sock from Bellamoden's The Moon is a Harsh Mistress - I think I've figured out how to fix the heel turn in pattern.  And now I'm wondering how she's doing - I've been so wrapped up in moving and knew that she'd come through her surgery, I haven't gotten any more updates.



I'd list my October reading list but it's on my computer at work, which is currently dead on my desk.













Tuesday, Novermber 4th - VOTE! If you don't vote - you will eat from the poisoned apple! (Not this one. This one is not poisoned. I checked. The old fashioned way)

Furthermore, if you don't vote, you are barred from either crowing or complaining about the outcome now and for the next four years.  This will be ruthlessly enforced.

Eek! A steek!

A crocheted steek (don't judge my crochet "skills") (it looked right anyway)(Don't judge my  photography skills either).

I'd duly crocheted the three center stitches of the steek....then abandoned Mary Tudor again. (I admit, the idea of cutting my knitting so that it's  basically turned to spaghetti was  hard to do). (That and Joan aka The Fairy Godknitter sent me that beaded scarf and then I got some Veronica yarn from La of Dizzy Blonde yarns......I'm only human. And I have to work.) 

Sometime Sunday afternoon, I thought to myself, "This is ridiculous. " (Actually, I said it out loud. I have a tendency to talk to myself. Thank God for cellphones. No one notices anymore.)

And then I picked up a pair of thread scissors and cut the steek. (it did occurr to me about halfway through that I really should have used my  GOOD scissors and not closest pair, but then it wouldn't be me.)

And if I didn't take truly awful pictures, you could see that the second picture's  top portion is a cut sleeve steek with a little bit of crocheted edge peeking out and a few rows knit on the sleeve , next to the unsteeked sleeve.

I'm not sure that clicking on it and making it bigger will help see it, but feel free to do so and oooh and ahhhh over it. Please.

From  Mommy Brain:(who is also a Carrie K)

Your result for What Your Taste in Art Says About You Test ...

Conscientious, Fulfilled, and Spiritual

23 Renaissance, 8 Islamic, -3 Ukiyo-e, -24 Cubist, -26 Abstract and -11 Impressionist!

The Renaissance was a cultural movement that profoundly affected European intellectual life.  Beginning in Italy, and spreading to the rest of Europe by the 16th century, its influence affected literature, philosopy, religion, art, politics, science, and all other aspects of intellectual enquiry. Renaissance artists looked at the human aspect of life in their art.  They did not reject religion but tended to look at it in it's purest form to create visions they thought depicted the ideals of religion.  Painters of this time had their own style and created works based on morality, religion, and human nature.  Many of the paintings depicted what they believed to be the corrupt nature of man.

People that like Renaissance paintings like things that are more challenging.  They tend to have a high emotional stability.  They also tend to be more conscientious then average.  They have a basic understanding of human nature and therefore are not easily surprised by anything that people may do.  They enjoy life and enjoy living.  They are very aware of their own mortality but do not dwell on the end but what they are doing in the present.  They enjoy learning, but may tend to be a bit more closed minded to new ideas as they feel that the viewpoint they have has been well researched and considered.  These people are more old fashioned and not quite as progressive.  They enjoy the finer things in life like comfort, a good meal, and homelife.  They tend to be more spiritual or religious by nature.  They are open to new aesthetic experiences.

This was a fun test, just browsing the gallery "test" pictures was a treat. Be warned, there's about 36 pictures to go through, three at a clip.

I won! I won! A copy of What If by Steven N Lee from A Reader's Journal. She actually felt badly about announcing the winner of her contest and then going on vacation before sending me the book. As if I didn't have enough  on my shelves  I picked up over the week:

• My Lady of Cleves by Margaret C Barnes
  
• It Itches by Franklin Habit
• The Plague Tales by Ann Benson
• Farthing by Jo Walton
• The Perfect Spy by John Le Carre

Next post you'll see why I love Amy and should probably move to MN.

Hez sez, "I will not yield the chair, Madame."