Just a few items:
1. Work has been completely kicking my rear - most days for the last month, I've worked 8a-7p or more, plowing like mad the whole time. This week was finally a little slower...which is a good thing, I guess, since...
2. I am presently being spanked like an ill-behaved 7-year-old by what appears to be a combination ear-nose-throat infection. I spent today at home on doctor's orders, and I got a bit tired of staring blankly at the TV or trying to sleep and failing due to a hacking, disturbing cough that must have the neighbors convinced that I'm about to die of something really gross. Also, despite the fact that I can more or less breathe out of both nostrils now, my right ear feels completely closed over and nothing, flat nothing, is making a difference.
3. Those of you with standard-issue domestic critters really, really need to look at this if you feed them wet food. It's a HUGE recall of foods that have caused kidney failure in both species and, worst of all, caused several hundred deaths, and while most of it involves store brands, it also includes Iams and Eukanuba. A few days old, but worth passing on nonetheless.
Knitting time has been especially slim for a couple of weeks, though as my SnBers can attest, I've made what I think is admirable progress on the Forest Canopy shawl. I will probably not make my 43 Things challenge deadline of March 31, but I will forgive myself. The Sea Silk is indeed a dream to work with, and after three years of knitting and grousing to the contrary, I finally find myself loving small needles (US4 Clover bamboo circulars). Of course there are WIP pictures to come, but not quite yet. To wit:
Item 1 is the major reason I've been AWOL lately - plus, with the new-Blogger switch, I have a hard time posting without wanting to fix everything I lost...and sleep is of the essence these days. If I'm going to come back to real posting, I want to do it right.
So I will remain scarce until I have time to get things together...here, at home, at work...and then I'll be back all shiny and pretty and new. I still don't promise to post more than weekly (again: in knitting vs. blogging, knitting is scissors-cut-paper every time), but I'll be going for the more all-my-interests content that I originally intended.
Please note that an exception may be made for the Yarntopia anniversary event next Saturday - because I am setting aside a bit of bank and may consequently have to Flash My Haul.
Now if you'll excuse me, I need to go cough up a lung.
Friday, March 23, 2007
Saturday, February 03, 2007
A difficult matter
Only one day late (give me a break - I'm still in Austin and don't have constant access!), I bring you the post I wanted to make yesterday - my contribution to the Brigid's Day silent poetry reading. Had I been more together, I might have posted something of my own; instead, I'm taking you on a short trip down (my) Memory Lane.
I used to be a shy person. While I didn't exactly have a hard time making friends when I was young, I did so slowly and carefully, and was very quiet most of the time. At the beginning of my 10th-grade year, I had to make a last-minute elective change, and my mother insisted that I make it a public speaking class. I'll save words by telling you that I was Not Happy about this, but it happened anyway.
By my senior year, I'd been elected president of the speech and debate team. While it didn't turn me into a boisterous, exuberant social butterfly, performing began bringing me out of my shell. Since my mid-20s, I've had several people laugh when I tell them I was once a shrinking violet, though plenty of folks still notice my reticence in new situations and with unfamiliar groups.
I won't say the change is all due to speech tournaments - the older I get, the less I worry about what people think of me, which is the important factor - but it certainly helped. In honor of this, I'm going to share one of the two poems I performed together that first year. T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats is oddly whimsical and (particularly to those of us who have cats...including 'Jellicles' such as mine) fantastically real. I paired the poem below with "The Naming of Cats" to meet length requirements for performance...but this one is my favorite.
[Disclaimer: I do not share Eliot's apparent dismissive disdain for the canine mentality; in fact, I adore most dogs...so no hate mail, please. ;) ]
The Ad-dressing of Cats
You've read of several kinds of Cat,
And my opinion now is that
You should need no interpreter
to understand their character.
You now have learned enough to see
That Cats are much like you and me
And other people whom we find
Possessed of various types of mind.
For some are sane and some are mad
And some are good and some are bad
And some are better, some are worse -
But all may be described in verse.
You've seen them both at work and games,
And learnt about their proper names,
Their habits and their habitat:
But
How would you ad-dress a Cat?
So first, your memory I'll jog,
And say: A CAT IS NOT A DOG.
Now Dogs pretend they like to fight;
They often bark, more seldom bite;
But yet a Dog is, on the whole,
What you would call a simple soul.
Of course I'm not including Pekes,
And such fantastic canine freaks.
The usual Dog about the Town
Is much inclined to play the clown,
And far from showing too much pride
Is frequently undignified.
He's very easily taken in -
Just chuck him underneath the chin
Or slap his back or shake his paw,
And he will gambol and guffaw.
He's such an easy-going lout,
He'll answer any hail or shout.
Again I must remind you that
A Dog's a Dog - A CAT'S A CAT.
With Cats, some say, one rule is true:
Don't speak till you are spoken to.
Myself, I do not hold with that -
I say, you should ad-dress a Cat.
But always keep in mind that he
Resents familiarity.
I bow, and taking off my hat,
Ad-dress him in this form: O CAT!
But if he is the Cat next door,
Whom I have often met before
(He comes to see me in my flat)
I greet him with an OOPSA CAT!
I've heard them call him James Buz-James -
But we've not got so far as names.
Before a Cat will condescend
To treat you as a trusted friend,
Some little token of esteem
Is needed, like a dish of cream;
And you might now and then supply
Some caviare, or Strassburg Pie,
Some potted grouse, or salmon paste -
He's sure to have his personal taste.
(I know a Cat, who makes a habit
Of eating nothing else but rabbit,
And when he's finished, licks his paws
So's not to waste the onion sauce.)
A Cat's entitled to expect
These evidences of respect.
And so in time you reach your aim,
And finally call him by his NAME.
So this is this, and that is that:
And there's how you AD-DRESS A CAT.
I used to be a shy person. While I didn't exactly have a hard time making friends when I was young, I did so slowly and carefully, and was very quiet most of the time. At the beginning of my 10th-grade year, I had to make a last-minute elective change, and my mother insisted that I make it a public speaking class. I'll save words by telling you that I was Not Happy about this, but it happened anyway.
By my senior year, I'd been elected president of the speech and debate team. While it didn't turn me into a boisterous, exuberant social butterfly, performing began bringing me out of my shell. Since my mid-20s, I've had several people laugh when I tell them I was once a shrinking violet, though plenty of folks still notice my reticence in new situations and with unfamiliar groups.
I won't say the change is all due to speech tournaments - the older I get, the less I worry about what people think of me, which is the important factor - but it certainly helped. In honor of this, I'm going to share one of the two poems I performed together that first year. T.S. Eliot's Old Possum's Book of Practical Cats is oddly whimsical and (particularly to those of us who have cats...including 'Jellicles' such as mine) fantastically real. I paired the poem below with "The Naming of Cats" to meet length requirements for performance...but this one is my favorite.
[Disclaimer: I do not share Eliot's apparent dismissive disdain for the canine mentality; in fact, I adore most dogs...so no hate mail, please. ;) ]
The Ad-dressing of Cats
You've read of several kinds of Cat,
And my opinion now is that
You should need no interpreter
to understand their character.
You now have learned enough to see
That Cats are much like you and me
And other people whom we find
Possessed of various types of mind.
For some are sane and some are mad
And some are good and some are bad
And some are better, some are worse -
But all may be described in verse.
You've seen them both at work and games,
And learnt about their proper names,
Their habits and their habitat:
But
How would you ad-dress a Cat?
So first, your memory I'll jog,
And say: A CAT IS NOT A DOG.
Now Dogs pretend they like to fight;
They often bark, more seldom bite;
But yet a Dog is, on the whole,
What you would call a simple soul.
Of course I'm not including Pekes,
And such fantastic canine freaks.
The usual Dog about the Town
Is much inclined to play the clown,
And far from showing too much pride
Is frequently undignified.
He's very easily taken in -
Just chuck him underneath the chin
Or slap his back or shake his paw,
And he will gambol and guffaw.
He's such an easy-going lout,
He'll answer any hail or shout.
Again I must remind you that
A Dog's a Dog - A CAT'S A CAT.
With Cats, some say, one rule is true:
Don't speak till you are spoken to.
Myself, I do not hold with that -
I say, you should ad-dress a Cat.
But always keep in mind that he
Resents familiarity.
I bow, and taking off my hat,
Ad-dress him in this form: O CAT!
But if he is the Cat next door,
Whom I have often met before
(He comes to see me in my flat)
I greet him with an OOPSA CAT!
I've heard them call him James Buz-James -
But we've not got so far as names.
Before a Cat will condescend
To treat you as a trusted friend,
Some little token of esteem
Is needed, like a dish of cream;
And you might now and then supply
Some caviare, or Strassburg Pie,
Some potted grouse, or salmon paste -
He's sure to have his personal taste.
(I know a Cat, who makes a habit
Of eating nothing else but rabbit,
And when he's finished, licks his paws
So's not to waste the onion sauce.)
A Cat's entitled to expect
These evidences of respect.
And so in time you reach your aim,
And finally call him by his NAME.
So this is this, and that is that:
And there's how you AD-DRESS A CAT.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Don't panic
I know this looks a bit different right now, and I also have lost most of my links in migrating to the new template (which appeared, you know, *required*). I'm not dissing anybody, believe me.
Plus, the entire reason I stopped by in the first place was to announce a long weekend in Austin. Don't get jealous - I won't be sitting around! It's my 11th YMCA Texas Youth & Government state conference - time to corral teenagers into creating a newspaper for the Youth Government that will be at the Capitol this weekend.
In no way do I consider the trip to Hill Country Weavers when it's all over a cherry on top. Rather, it is a grave responsibility. *somber face*
After starting over Saturday night, the Red Shawl Dammit is moving along nicely. I keep taking it out just so I can tell people what I'm calling it.
I'm going to try to borrow a better camera to take progress pictures. I'll also be starting a Log Cabin to donate to a silent auction for a work event. LB Homespun on 11s should go quickly, right?
As blog posting inhibits my ability to finish packing, I'm off. I'll miss the SnBuddies (tm) tonight! Somebody split a brownie for me.
And can I get some "rain go away" vibes for good measure?
P.S. Yes, if the trip to HCW turns into SEX (non-knitters: stash enhancement expedition [I should put up a glossary]), I will show you what I get.
Plus, the entire reason I stopped by in the first place was to announce a long weekend in Austin. Don't get jealous - I won't be sitting around! It's my 11th YMCA Texas Youth & Government state conference - time to corral teenagers into creating a newspaper for the Youth Government that will be at the Capitol this weekend.
In no way do I consider the trip to Hill Country Weavers when it's all over a cherry on top. Rather, it is a grave responsibility. *somber face*
After starting over Saturday night, the Red Shawl Dammit is moving along nicely. I keep taking it out just so I can tell people what I'm calling it.
I'm going to try to borrow a better camera to take progress pictures. I'll also be starting a Log Cabin to donate to a silent auction for a work event. LB Homespun on 11s should go quickly, right?
As blog posting inhibits my ability to finish packing, I'm off. I'll miss the SnBuddies (tm) tonight! Somebody split a brownie for me.
And can I get some "rain go away" vibes for good measure?
P.S. Yes, if the trip to HCW turns into SEX (non-knitters: stash enhancement expedition [I should put up a glossary]), I will show you what I get.
Thursday, January 25, 2007
In the front car, with my arms in the air
I've been on quite a roller coaster ride for weeks. But you know what? The best thing about roller coasters is, no matter how nervous the highs make you, how queasy the lows make you, how dizzy you get from spinning and twisting...if you get to the end and the sum total is pretty much positive...nay, exhilarating...
...you jump off, look at those on the ride with you, holler "Let's go again!", and jump right back in line.
Lately, most every day has been like that for me. I'm not precisely where I want to be yet, for sure - and sometimes it's hard to think I'll ever get there - but for every death-drop day like yesterday, there is a gradual, giddy climb like there was today...and a few fabulous moments, here and there, of hanging suspended upside-down in space. There is so much going on. I am so tired, and I have so much to do...and I'm loving every minute of it.
Here's to getting back in line.
*looks around, hollers "Let's go again!", and dashes off to the turnstile*
...you jump off, look at those on the ride with you, holler "Let's go again!", and jump right back in line.
Lately, most every day has been like that for me. I'm not precisely where I want to be yet, for sure - and sometimes it's hard to think I'll ever get there - but for every death-drop day like yesterday, there is a gradual, giddy climb like there was today...and a few fabulous moments, here and there, of hanging suspended upside-down in space. There is so much going on. I am so tired, and I have so much to do...and I'm loving every minute of it.
Here's to getting back in line.
*looks around, hollers "Let's go again!", and dashes off to the turnstile*
Thursday, January 18, 2007
Sheesh
This is how you go a month without posting to your blog: I could have *sworn* I posted right around New Year's Day. Imagine my surprise. I swear, I really *do* mean to post more often this year. In my defense, when one spends all day, every weekday (and, apparently, some weekends) playing with words for a living...it's sometimes a little tiring to do so for enjoyment.
I felt that I needed to give the holidays a little space before I announced that I was pretty glad they're gone. This may have been apparent from my last few posts, I'm afraid; Bryan and I both found it hard to muster enthusiasm this year. I think all of us (meaning our parents too) had some trouble processing the holiday season with Bryan's mom not here. It's still difficult to say too much about this, at times – but the one thing I managed was to make tons of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from her recipe, and in succeeding to make them tasty, I also managed to honor her skill and flair in the kitchen. That helps a little.
In consideration of my extended absence, and in lieu of my standard irregularly-scheduled, rambly post...oh, who am I kidding? This is as rambly as normal. You will note in advance the lack of photos...and you will deal, K? Hit the links instead.
- Just after Christmas, with assistance from Amy, I decided upon the Forest Canopy shawl as my first lace project. In short order, Amy both gave me the pattern as a gift and scheduled a trip to Yarntopia to help me search out some HandMaiden silky goodness for the task.
Fast forward to NYE, when (with me still sitting by empty-handed) Amy and Bryan voted for the Amethyst colorway of Sea Silk, and I put in my order at Knitty-Noddy. (Digression to note that Evelyn was extraordinary...so much so that she deserves her own post, which she will receive on my next round. In the meantime, go buy yarn from her.)
Then, fast forward to last Thursday, when I decided to hand-wind one of the two GORGEOUS OH MY GOD GORGEOUS hanks. Meredith magically produced a "portable" swift for me to borrow, and I spent the next two-ish hours in winding bliss...results to be shown soon. It's very pretty. Really. As in, I wanted to hold it and pet it and gaze into it as if it were a crystal ball. I am trying to refrain from dubbing it "the precious," because that's been done.
No, I have not started the Forest Canopy yet. This is because Still More Insanely Busy Work Time has rendered me a bit of a stress ball in off hours, and consequently, I have lacked the focus required.
- Instead, I have been working on a couple of baby items from Mason-Dixon. Don't get any ideas, folks. My co-worker Mary has three daughters, two of whom are pregnant. One of them – the one that lives with Mary - could pop at any time. I have a Baby Bib O' Love to embellish, and a Baby Genius Burp Cloth (which may be my favorite Mindless Project ever) on the needles. Mary is a crocheter, so it sounds as though blankets are taken care of...but I'm really looking forward to surprising her.
It would also appear that it marks the end of my knitting being novel to my male co-workers. I joined two of them for lunch at our favorite wings place (I always get the boneless...no mess on the hands), pulled out the Baby Genius while we waited, and neither of them even blinked twice. (Consider that the *first* time I pulled out a project in front of them – a Ballband Dishcloth – it attracted a great deal of curiosity and started a 10-minute conversation.)
- This weekend, I began working in earnest on a rectangular shawl in a zigzag-eyelet pattern. On my never-before-detailed December trip to Twisted Yarns, I took advantage of the Gumball Sale to get 15% off a massive quantity of Manos Cotton Stria in lovely red. This was because, as I said to Amy (who surprised me by appearing there out of nowhere that day, when I was off work and on my way to Fort Worth), "I want a red shawl for myself, dammit!"
Consequently, this project will henceforth be known as the Red Shawl Dammit.
I'm quite enjoying the yarn so far. It's a teensy bit splitty, as roving-wrapped-in-thread yarns are wont to be, but it's squishy, neither too thick nor too thin, and should give me just what I'm aiming for. I did a swatch in pattern, a bit too loose on US7s, but likeable; I'm working the project on 6s, which seems to be going well so far. The pattern is fairly easy to memorize, and about three notches above mindless, so it's good for "after I've unwound" evening work.
In other news, my husband is a really good cook, which is especially nice when I get home at 7p after starting work at 8a, or when I wake up (and spend all day) with a killer migraine. Bryan cooks like I do – get ideas from recipes, then wing it to your liking – only more freeform, if that's possible. And let me say that the man has a way with pork. Loin, sausages, roast...he knows just what to do with all of them.
Oh yeah - also: it's cold. Not other-places cold, not historically cold, certainly not Armageddon-is-coming cold, but seriously chilly all the same. Must. Complete. More handknits. For self. And still, maybe, not as cold as it was a couple of days ago...but, um, nippy.
Finally, a random WOO-HOO for the 100% fantastic, talented, and beautiful America Ferrera, who won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy (TV)...which means that I should probably start watching Ugly Betty. I've adored her since her debut in Real Women Have Curves; she's a hell of an actress, and lovely, real, and smart to boot.
I don't know *when*, but look for pictures next time. (No promises.)
I felt that I needed to give the holidays a little space before I announced that I was pretty glad they're gone. This may have been apparent from my last few posts, I'm afraid; Bryan and I both found it hard to muster enthusiasm this year. I think all of us (meaning our parents too) had some trouble processing the holiday season with Bryan's mom not here. It's still difficult to say too much about this, at times – but the one thing I managed was to make tons of oatmeal chocolate chip cookies from her recipe, and in succeeding to make them tasty, I also managed to honor her skill and flair in the kitchen. That helps a little.
In consideration of my extended absence, and in lieu of my standard irregularly-scheduled, rambly post...oh, who am I kidding? This is as rambly as normal. You will note in advance the lack of photos...and you will deal, K? Hit the links instead.
- Just after Christmas, with assistance from Amy, I decided upon the Forest Canopy shawl as my first lace project. In short order, Amy both gave me the pattern as a gift and scheduled a trip to Yarntopia to help me search out some HandMaiden silky goodness for the task.
Fast forward to NYE, when (with me still sitting by empty-handed) Amy and Bryan voted for the Amethyst colorway of Sea Silk, and I put in my order at Knitty-Noddy. (Digression to note that Evelyn was extraordinary...so much so that she deserves her own post, which she will receive on my next round. In the meantime, go buy yarn from her.)
Then, fast forward to last Thursday, when I decided to hand-wind one of the two GORGEOUS OH MY GOD GORGEOUS hanks. Meredith magically produced a "portable" swift for me to borrow, and I spent the next two-ish hours in winding bliss...results to be shown soon. It's very pretty. Really. As in, I wanted to hold it and pet it and gaze into it as if it were a crystal ball. I am trying to refrain from dubbing it "the precious," because that's been done.
No, I have not started the Forest Canopy yet. This is because Still More Insanely Busy Work Time has rendered me a bit of a stress ball in off hours, and consequently, I have lacked the focus required.
- Instead, I have been working on a couple of baby items from Mason-Dixon. Don't get any ideas, folks. My co-worker Mary has three daughters, two of whom are pregnant. One of them – the one that lives with Mary - could pop at any time. I have a Baby Bib O' Love to embellish, and a Baby Genius Burp Cloth (which may be my favorite Mindless Project ever) on the needles. Mary is a crocheter, so it sounds as though blankets are taken care of...but I'm really looking forward to surprising her.
It would also appear that it marks the end of my knitting being novel to my male co-workers. I joined two of them for lunch at our favorite wings place (I always get the boneless...no mess on the hands), pulled out the Baby Genius while we waited, and neither of them even blinked twice. (Consider that the *first* time I pulled out a project in front of them – a Ballband Dishcloth – it attracted a great deal of curiosity and started a 10-minute conversation.)
- This weekend, I began working in earnest on a rectangular shawl in a zigzag-eyelet pattern. On my never-before-detailed December trip to Twisted Yarns, I took advantage of the Gumball Sale to get 15% off a massive quantity of Manos Cotton Stria in lovely red. This was because, as I said to Amy (who surprised me by appearing there out of nowhere that day, when I was off work and on my way to Fort Worth), "I want a red shawl for myself, dammit!"
Consequently, this project will henceforth be known as the Red Shawl Dammit.
I'm quite enjoying the yarn so far. It's a teensy bit splitty, as roving-wrapped-in-thread yarns are wont to be, but it's squishy, neither too thick nor too thin, and should give me just what I'm aiming for. I did a swatch in pattern, a bit too loose on US7s, but likeable; I'm working the project on 6s, which seems to be going well so far. The pattern is fairly easy to memorize, and about three notches above mindless, so it's good for "after I've unwound" evening work.
In other news, my husband is a really good cook, which is especially nice when I get home at 7p after starting work at 8a, or when I wake up (and spend all day) with a killer migraine. Bryan cooks like I do – get ideas from recipes, then wing it to your liking – only more freeform, if that's possible. And let me say that the man has a way with pork. Loin, sausages, roast...he knows just what to do with all of them.
Oh yeah - also: it's cold. Not other-places cold, not historically cold, certainly not Armageddon-is-coming cold, but seriously chilly all the same. Must. Complete. More handknits. For self. And still, maybe, not as cold as it was a couple of days ago...but, um, nippy.
Finally, a random WOO-HOO for the 100% fantastic, talented, and beautiful America Ferrera, who won the Golden Globe for Best Actress in a Comedy (TV)...which means that I should probably start watching Ugly Betty. I've adored her since her debut in Real Women Have Curves; she's a hell of an actress, and lovely, real, and smart to boot.
I don't know *when*, but look for pictures next time. (No promises.)
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