I have been playing outside. (Tried to start cutting on that tree, but my neighbor came over to help and ended up knocking the chain off. Still trying to find the repair manual... Sigh.)
So I have some photos to warm up Joan, and LeeAnn, and Nora and Angie and Peter and whoever else lives someplace with actual winter. (You guys can return the favor this summer when even the snakes and lizards are wondering WTF they're doing living in this hellhole...)
As always, click to embiggen, should you so desire.
And it's only February.
Which means it's time to post pictures of the weather, which is our reward for living in hell for 9 months out of the year.
Taken today:
Flowering pear (I think):
Apropos of nothing, one of my Firefox tabs is showing Jessalu's blog, with the title of the post being Epic. I keep seeing it out of the corner of my eye and reading "Epic Jesus".
And that is your random for the day. I have lovely pictures of Sabino Canyon from Sunday, beautiful water and warm sun and happy children, but I can find the battery charger for my camera and the computer cable for Rick's. And while the cards are interchangeable, those other things are not. Drat. They are stuck there forever. I am also working on B-Side for my Olympic project in the WIP finishing category. I think I have put on about 3 inches, which doesn't sound like much until you realize each inch is roughly 2400 stitches. I have four soul crushing rows before I divide for the armscyes and as FSM as my witness, I shall finish those four tonight.
Here is a tiny little taste... Look, the leaves are finally turning!
In the interest of full disclosure, I took that on new year's day, but we were at the park this weekend and it still looks like that...
Speaking of the park, this is what we were doing there:
Squeak's first (and second) bike rides. Bug loved being able to ride and ride and ride, and I loved that all afternoon he was calm and quiet. :-) It's starting to stay light longer in the evenings, so if I could get my act together we could have bike rides after work/school, too.
And since this is at least nominally a knitting blog, LOOK! I can has projects.
Basic roll brim hat Can't remember how many stitches I used I-cord top knot Lonesome Stone Alpaca Feet in Ol Blue Eyes (bought at Taos HI ANGIE), held double 5mm needles
Basic Ann Bud Mittens 5 st/in, 32 stitches around Ribbing up to gusset in two strands of purple Reynolds Soft Sea Wool, end of thumb and top of mitten in one strand of Reynolds and one strand of Alpaca Feet.
Next up, starting today if all is well, the scarf he asked for, out of the same two yarns (held singly this time) in a Fibonacci sequence. Cuz Mama, she loves teh maths. (Lest ye worry, after that I'll be knitting a hat and mittens for Squeak. Somewhat large, so as to be useful next year too, as our winter is almost over.
ETA: I have a new comment system. I hope it doesn't suck. I liked Haloscan, but someone bought out the original and made the free service cost, whilst also changing it to suck more. (Sorta like how the TypePad people did recently.) If the new commenting system is awful, I shall try to research better ones. Lemme know. Incidentally, it appears as though you have to be on the post itself, and not the main site, to see the commenting section - there is apparently no button at the bottom of each post from the main site. Strike One.
Sigh. Two more days until the DH is home from his trip and I can go somewhere and be ALONE. (He thinks he's going to be all huggy and kissy and lovey and "I missed you so", but really, I'm going to chuck the kids at him and run away screaming for an hour.) Toward that end, I let the Bug stay home from daycare today. o.0 (Please see title.)
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I'm the only one in the JoanCookieOtteralong who hasn't flashed her Madli. Or her nupps. Actually, mine are not real nupps - they're fakes.
That color, while lovely on my monitor, is nowhere near the deep dark teal/marine blue of this yarn. I have no hopes of catching up with Ms. 20 repeats in a day or Ms. Poor me I only did 15 in a day. I'd be worried, but a) it's not a race, and b) someone has to finish last... *********
Look! Sweet peas! Stock! Petunias! Gerania! Green leaves and (achoo) pollen pods! (Click to embiggen.)
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In other news, I'm enjoying the heck out of the slippin' stripin' socks. The laceweight makes them nice and squishy and the stripes hold my interest. (Nora said something about easily-entertained mouth-breathers the other day - count me in that group.) I have no pictures as yet because I forgot to take a picture while I had my camera in there and now I'm too lazy. I've turned the heel on the first one (subbing a short row heel for the called-for gusset and heel flap) so I hope to have a finished one to show off soon.
First, a flower for Joan. My geranium is blooming again.
Today starts the JoanCookieLace project. I wound the yarn, I found the needles, I am paralyzed and have not started yet. Sigh. When DH is gone for any length of time (in this case, it's been three days), the fiber starts to take over the house.
What you see there at the bottom is the first time all my Options tips have been put away (except the pair in Linden and the pair in Mary Jane) since I got the set. Labeled, even. I told you I was paralyzed - I did that this morning whilst looking for my size 5 tips.
I also picked out my first sock-club yarn. I consider it a deep and bitter irony that the ONLY WIP I put in was the one I pulled out first. I am thinking the universe is telling me to finish up some damn projects already. Anyway, I'll be finishing the Slippin' Stripin' Socks from last year's Sock Madness (signups are right now, if you're playing). These are laceweight socks held double, with the colors of one strand of laceweight changed in and out to create stripes. They're cute, and they're going to be really really soft. (I just have to remember not to wear them if my heels are cracked. Dry climate, alas.)
One more cutesy picture - I saw friends on Friday that I hadn't seen for months. (Well, I'd seen Dr. B, as he's Bug's and Squeak's doctor, but his wife, Gramma B, I hadn't seen.) They bestowed wonderful gifts on the boys (including the little sweater on the table in the picture toward the top, cuz she's a knitter) and gave me this mug, which combines my two best (non-family) loves: knitting and moose.
ETA: I think Haloscan is down. (Either that, or they spontaneously decided to dump me.) That means no comments until ees feeksed.Ees feeksed!Ees no feekst again. It appears ees really feekst this time. YMMV.
Valentine's weekend we went to San Diego, and one day we hopped on the Coaster and went to Carlsbad to have lunch at our favorite restaurant. Bug was over. the. moon.
Cutest moment of the trip? When he said, "I am never ever ever getting off this train."
Squeak slept through the whole thing. SIL kept saying she was going to make a series of pictures of Squeak asleep in his carrier: Squeak on the train, Squeak on the beach, Squeak at Sea World, Squeak on the Midway...
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Look Joan, warm!
(Subtitled: "Sigh, fingerprints on THIS lens too.")
African daisies say warm to me, even before they're open for the day.
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I recently decided I need to eat better and cut out some of the sweets. I've spent the last couple of days eating every last cookie, candy, cake, ice cream and donut in the house so they won't be around when I start eating better. I think I'm ready now.
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My wool/dog hair blend handspun. First skein is about sport/DK weight, second skein is about aran. Apparently as time goes on, I tend to spin more bulky than when I started. o.0 (Click for embiggenation. The coin in those photos is an American quarter, btw.) The dog hair had a hidden issue, too - when I washed the yarn to set the twist, the kitchen stunk like wet dog for hours.
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I muscled in on some of Cookie's Joan-Along lace action. Joan sent me some lovely beads (I mentioned thinking about beads in passing to her, and they showed up on my doorstep. I think I'll tell her I've always been fond of Matt Damon and see what she can do.) I think I'll add them to the edging. Or maybe not. Maybe I'll replace every blinking nupp in the project with them. Or maybe not. It's hard for me to control my magpie tendencies when they get a-rollin'.
(This was days ago - it's actually cool, gray and rainy today, which I love - will mean some fantastic allergies wildflowers for Joan.)
Second, the Hate.
I have discovered that I can EITHER have a life, or be caught up on the laundry, but not both.
(I said it was only a little bit.)
Third, the crap. (It's not really crap, most of it is awesome, but I'm tired of saying "Hey, I have some random stuff for you.")
Item 3.1 - Opal is way extra talented and I gots the goods, yo. (Ooh ooh, when I looked up her shop to link, I see she's having a sale!)
My photography does not do it justice. It's the perfect length, weight, sparkle, and it matches my earrings, though not the shirt I was wearing.
Item 3.2 - The other day, I went shopping at Ross, and when I stepped in the door, it was suddenly 1987. Sade was playing, and I was looking through such gems as these. Click for embiggenation, if you dare.
If you can't tell, the blue one has a tie painted on it, with a faux vest that says Rock and Roll. The white and black one is self ... (what did we call that, belted? tied?) with a plastic t-shirt ring off to one side.
And also, yes, I'm wearing neon orange eye shadow. And I'm rocking it.
Item 3.4 - I spend way too much time on YouTube these days. At least I haven't resorted to MAKING gems like these. Forget it. I can't even inflict this damage on you as a joke. Know that there are people out there with more free time, more access to bad music and lolcats, and less care for the rest of humanity than I have.
Item 3.5 - But I could watch this every freaking day and still laugh.
Item 3.6 - I will probably continue to embed videos in my posts until I get to the end of YouTube. And Vimeo.
Item 3.7 - Squishy sent me this (to show me the bridesmaid dress I will be wearing to her Texas Cheerleader Wedding) and it's too horrid not to share, point, and laugh. (As far as I can tell from various urban dictionaries, the use of which forever dooms me to geekdom, a chav is a white trash, gang banger wannabe, particularly one who leaves the education system and enters the welfare system at a young age. And a caravan is an RV.) I kinda wonder how the bride felt being interviewed for the "Outer Limits Tacky" article - if she took the "they're just jealous, cuz it was awesome" attitude, I might love her just a little.
Item 3.8 - I have actually been knitting a bit, and might soon have a looooong overdue FO.
That my kid saw the ice cream truck at the park the other day and shouted, "Look Mama! The Song Truck!" and continued to call it that even after Daddy bought him ice cream from the window.
That the little battery-powered train ride that goes around the pond at the park is Bug's idea of high-living.
The way Squeak pops off after he's finished nursing, all milk-drunk, eyes rolling back in his head, milk dribbling from the corner of his mouth.
Taking advantage of the weather and the lack of responsibility to enjoy myself.
That when he's offered a gum ball from the box, Bug spends a good several minutes selecting the right color, going so far as to almost bite into one before he changes his mind and grabs a different one.
Velvety purple petunias.
Jackie Chan movies.
February in Tucson.
That people have no compunction about making fun of people who behave badly. (Warning, video NSFW, though the article is) I kinda want that on my iPod.
That after six tries, I believe the heel on my second La Charade is done properly and at least resembles what I did on the first one. (Notes would have been handy.)
That Squeak is finally starting to gurgle and coo like a happy baby, instead of alternating between "I'm having a giant poop" grunting, crying, and utter silence.
As much as I love Bug and Squeak, the DH had his nethers snipped yesterday and I will be pregnant no more.
The ribbon thing. Anyone know where I can learn this? (Note to Squishy: I'm wearing those teal/black hot pant things to your wedding.) (Prolly NSFW, but what do I care about that?)
That when that song started playing, Squeak grinned and cooed.
Somewhere a fun office environment exists (even if it's not *quite* this fun) and there are people who like their jobs. And I want to meet the SILF guy. And maybe steal his t-shirt.
This idea. I am too late for January, and I will use February to finish up some SIPs (that's socks-in-progress, y'all) and take my time to arrange for ten packages for the rest of the year.
Which means I should have started with the Joan-warming pictures YESTERDAY! I have an excuse, though. My punk-ass brother got married on Saturday, and there were more family things on Sunday, and then I napped. (Sorry, Joan.)
My dad was the best man. (Joan, please note these photos were outside. And I was wishing for a fan.) My little man was the ring bearer, or would have been if a) they had remembered to buy a pillow and fake rings, and b) he had consented to walk down the aisle to Grampa instead of burying his face in my shoulder. (Note the green grass behind him.)
The Bug took over the camera then. It was for the best - he fell asleep on the 10 minute drive to the venue and had to be woken up. He was NOT happy. I sat him in Squeak's stroller and he snapped away most of the night. He would have gotten some good photos later in the evening, if he hadn't managed to smear pizza grease (from the kiddie meal) on the lens of my camera. Sigh. He didn't do too bad, given that he aims the camera by holding the digital screen, instead of the little viewfinder lens, up to his eye.)
My new SIL is fantastic, but I just gotta ask - who told my punk-ass brother he could grow up into such a cool guy? Damn.
I'm kinda liking the idea that I don't have to go back to that particular place. (I found out recently that I'm actually not allowed to.) I cleaned out my desk last night and brought home all the detritus of six and a half years of my life at that place, and now I'm free of it. The DH is of the opinion that we can make do without my paycheck for a while, so currently I'm coasting, and I'm rather enjoying it. It's astounding, though, how my mornings disappear. BS (Before Squeak) I woke up fairly early, so my mornings were as long as my afternoons. Now, I don't get around to showering and breakfast until 10 or 10:30, and damn, then it's lunchtime, and before I know it, it's time to pick up the Bug and have dinner.
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Attention, knitbloggers who live in warm climates, and knitbloggers who live in damn cold places but who have pictures of summer stashed somewhere: it's about time for the annual Warming Joan photo project. Start collecting photos of warmth, flowers, people in shorts, etc. Pick a day and post something that will warm Joan up despite the howling gales outside her windows, or post every day, until the snow melts and her garden starts bringing on the green again! (I'll start posting them on February 1, but you can start earlier iffin you wanna.)
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Imbrium reminded me about Jonathan Coulton the other day. I am ashamed to say I'd forgotten. Some of my favorites, romantic ballads all:
Do go to each page and play them - you won't be sorry. (If there's not a link at the top to play the song, click the Download the MP3 link and it will play.)
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Since I'm saving my flowers and park photos for next week, here are some others. First, you know you wish you were me.
Custom-created just for me by the talented Opal. It's quite possible I will never take them off. Sent with some sweet little stitch markers and some chocolate that got opened almost as fast as the earrings-package did. (I had to - when I started opening the package, Bug came over and said, "What is that present for me?" Heh. I had to share.)
Here I post about DH's reaction to my weird dream, and you all chide me for subconsciously picking Jessica Simpson instead of some hotter, brainier chick. ;-P The Lene Socks are washed and dried and awaiting the rest of their little box of stuff to join them. I told DH I'd mop tonight, but I think it might be more important to go shopping. >:-) Actually, I could probably do both, but I don't want him to know that. I ordered my Beaverslide yarn this morning. I went for the new 3-ply McTaggart Tweeds, in a medium brown. (Autumn Dogwood, if you care.) I'd originally envisioned the coat in a bright lipstick red, but lately I've been rocking the brown maternity shirt, and DH mentioned how nice I looked in brown, and well. Brown coat it is. I can't wait to get started on it. Please remind me I said that when I'm whining about the acres of stockinette. In the meantime, I've been Monkeying with some Fleece Artist (in Marine) to keep me busy. It was part of a prize from Joan, who knows from good prizes. Blogless Lynn wasn't kidding, that pattern goes fast.
I'm learning that I really don't like turning heels, except for the standard heel flap, but I hate casting on stretchily (is so a word) and prefer to knit toe up. Even knitting a toe-up gusset is distasteful, as the gusset grows and grows instead of shrinking, as it does from the top down. I'm giving some thought to knitting a sock starting at the top of the heel, with a provisional cast on, and then knitting up from there. That way I can make best use of the yarn, I don't have to do that heinous cast on, I get to do the beloved heel flap, and I know I won't run out of yarn on the foot. Best of both worlds, or ridiculous fiddly overcomplicated procedure? Who knows until I try it? (Hey, I only just heard about Houdini socks, so I still have a ways to go before I get to Most Complex and Unintuitive Way to Make Socks.)
And if that chocolate is wrapped in pastry, deep-fried, sprinkled with cinnamon sugar and served with ice cream, so much the better.
Look, Joan! Flowers! (It officially hit 80 here yesterday.)
Baby sweater in the wild, with permission from Baby's papa.
(Bad color on Baby shows better color on sweater. He doesn't look like a tanning-bed accident in real life.)
(More natural coloration. I am not Pioneer Woman with Mad Photoshop Skillz.)
Additional randomness, I would like to tell you: if you are at all a plus-sized woman (which for the store in question means 14 or above, I think, and we will not comment on that at this time) and you have a hard time finding pants that fit, do please go right now to your nearest Lane Bryant and get yourself some Right Fit pants. I have THREE pairs of them, and I actually leave the store smiling, with a spring in my step, instead of either fuming or near tears, which is the usual. They redid their sizings so they are based not only on measurements, but proportion. Therefore, a woman with wide hips and thinner legs isn't trying to squeeze herself into the same size as a woman with a narrower waist and more booty. Refreshing, truly. I lurve them. Go buy them. Go tell your favorite store that everyone should have these options - even skinny stick women. (I would suggest that men have the right to nicely-fitting jeans too, but until they start making as many easy-care, attractive clothes for women as men get, I'm keeping mum.)
I am going to the lake this weekend and only packed four knitting projects. Is that enough?
Sock Madness (Ravelry link) starts soon and I can't wait.
