The Great Kniting Balrog

the blog is dead

2009-07-28T11:56:00.000-06:00

Long Live the blog

www.jinxsa.wordpress.com

Playing Games

2008-07-03T19:36:00.004-06:00

I got the new job, am settling in. Sorta, I have had the job for about 5 weeks and am only going for actual training Sunday. The job market in the south of the province is rediculous in retail. You can't find qualified management. Everyone applying for the jobs are coming from other industries. There is a feeling among them that they need a job and while none are available in thier line of work so they will stoop to retail. I mean how hard can it be. What a joke. Your degree in autocad or whatever isn't really going to help you deal with returns, pissed off customers, stock that never comes in and the fact you have to deal with it all at the same time. I had a career secretary apply for a management her argument that was that a manager isn't a hands on position, bwahhahhaaahhaaa!!!!!! In a store open about 80 hours and with a budget of 130 hours available, a manager uses 40...how on earth isn't it a hands on job?? They are totally clueless.

My pet peeve for the past year (I may have mentioned it before) is when people have a very limited availability for example 8 am to 3 pm Monday through Friday and want 40 hours a week...they go right to the bottom of the pile. Since one needs to handle money in this job a totally lack of any basic mathematical skills means you go right to the bottom of the pile.

Myself I have been gaming more. The DS is seeing much more work than before. Cake Mania, Diner Dash, Harvest Moon Cute, Cooking Mama (That is a terrible game-I am not an idiot, please don't trreat me like one) and Etrian Odyessy. My portable gaming is typical of my age and gender (30 year female gamer market is the highest growing sector of the gaming industry, too bad that game magazines and even mainstream magaizines aren't catching on to that). My laptop has Build A lot, Sims Castaway and Diner Dash. My main pc has Hellgate London. Both the laptop and the desktop pc's had to be restored due to a bad microsoft update and I had to rebuild the wireless network as my dad downloaded a virus. He has no computer savvy at all anymore.. it's kinda scary as he used to write computer programs. My Wii has Boom Blocks, Lego Indiana Jones and House of the Dead 2&3. My 360 is sitting around collection dust as it has turned into a total frat boy system...

I get a discount but it's still not exactly covering all the games I am picking up. No doubt this will wear off, but I am thankful with my dvd habit, especially my fixation with BBC box sets, I am not working at a movie place. Or a yarn store.

On the topic of yarn I don't have any pics but I have been working on a few things the past week and a half. After my epic fail at the Hogwarts Duel Club (I signed up when I thought I wasn't going to get the current job, got it and was running around for about 4 weeks trying to do 2 jobs and figure out the new position on my own.) I hadn't knit a stitch in about a month. That is a tital record for me. I Picked up my needles againthis week and am a lot happier for it. I still have a killer infection in my jaw and ears and insomnia, but the change in my mood is notable. I promise I will not ever be appart from my needles for so long again. I am knitting some baby shoes (Tulip from Knitty) for a co-worker and have picked up a pair of unfinished monkeys, a purse for my Hogwarts swap and am almost done that (yeay) and am working on some lace. One of these or a few of them may end up in the local version of the county fair. Will keep you posted. Well, I'll try.

Um hi remember me?

2008-05-27T23:40:00.002-06:00

Well a little over 2 months sinced my last post. Not my best time admittedly. What's been going on? Not a lot. Some major sock knitting combined with a case of 2nd heel syndrome (Second Sock Syndrome is for wimps). I'm making a skirt for summer that is in detention. I have been watching and still obsessing over Doctor Who. I was flirting with the idea of going on a yarn retreated but I debated too long. Waffling=not just for breakfast anymore.

In personal news, I proved I was a very slow learner and went of my B12 again. Got thrown into a depression and now I am doing better. I have always had a hard time remember to take pills but I discovered this melty breath strip that is 1000 mcg each and have been taking 2 (My doctor recommeds 1500 for me) Tis yummy too. But after a few weeks I began to feel sooo much better.

As some of you know I have been thinking od switching jobs for a while now, well I am now an assistant/acting manager of a video game store. It's pretty ok. Well I have only worked 1 shift. It doesn't seem significantly different. There is a fairly steep learning curve for product information, I thought I knew a good bit about games but apparently not so much. So far everything to do with this job, especially anything coming from H/O is disorganized. My friends are saying it's a lateral move at best. Retail is retail. There is not a Head Office in retail anywhere who is on the ball. They simply have been out of stores too long to remember what it's like.

I'll try to update on the weekend how it's going. I'm working everyday for a few weeks while I work out my notice at one place and train at the other. There may be a contest to follow.

Thanks for your patience with me.

What's a little humiliation and nudity between strangers?

2008-03-11T18:37:00.002-06:00

Today was a a day. Not busy but not dead with lonely people sucking up huge amounts of my time talking to hear thier own voices. People asking me questions and apparently not wanting to hear the answer. (FYI: WEARING SOMETHING 3 SIZES TOO BIG MAKES YOU LOOK LIKE A HIPPO THE FACT THAT IT'S CHEAP DOESN'T MAKE YOU LOOK LESS HIPPOLIKE~sorry that's been building up all day,glad to have it out of my system.) I wore a really cute billowy skirt today not entirely out of desire for it to be spring but primarily because I have no pants that fit and are clean or for that matter cleanish. It was a nice day at about 2 degrees (celcius) and there was a bit of a cool breeze but nothing my metabolism couldn't keep up with. However when I came home something had changed. I stopped to help a lady with a broken arm carry her stuff to the car. This was one of those ginormous 80 metric ton bags of dog food. So both my hands are full and I can bearly see over the damn thing but I struggle to the car. The wind had picked up somewhat in the past 9 hours. And the skirt not only blew up but over my head and got caught between myself and the dogfood. So I am in a parking lot I can't see and I can't put the dog food down because it's caught and tangled up and such. Well about 3 decades later the lady realizes I'm in trouble and helps me out. I put the dog food in the truck and with as much dignity as I could muster walked home. On the way I got 3 proposals from passersby...and none of them were marriage.

Edited to Add: The skirt flying up has happened to me a lot, it's windy and I like skirts and I may have blogged about and the thing that's freaking me out is I think I CAME UP WITH THE EXACT SAME PUNCHLINE. It's making me crazy. I've looked but alas I can't find it.

Mail Call

2008-03-04T16:21:00.006-07:00

Well it's over. March is here. The really hideous family thing I never blogged about it over and turned out not to be such a big deal after all (the homecare nurses threatened to take my father out of the home as we weren't caring for him properly, the reviewing nurse told them to get stuffed basically). Kinda Anti-climatic. I am cleansing my pallate of February aftertaste by participating in March Sweater Madness. I am doing a pull over version of Mr. Greenjeans. I've actually finished the body and tried it on a few time it fits but the armholes are a bit big so I'll have to fudge the sleeves a bit. But it FITS! Michelle has seen the picture of last years she is laughing now I am sure.

Friday I got notification I had a few deliveries arrive. I was felled by a migraine all weekend. Personally only a mojor wimp could call the headache I had a migraine but apparently that is the correct term because it made me sick to my stomach (why no I can't spell nauseaous. See?). I got called into work yesterday and will be doing a short shift in Calgary tomorrow so my mom was nice enough to pick up my packages from the Post Office for me today. I got out of the bath to see this.

3 big boxes one was my order from http://www.thesweetsheep.com/. Here is a few small shot full of loverly yarn porn.

I also got my Mystery Swap package from Sister Amy. ( http://nunknits.blogspot.com/ ) She sent me a lovely themed package: Latvian Mittens. There was a copy of Piecework Magazine which I haven't read before. it's pretty awesome. 4 colours of Lace Weight Misti Alpacha to make the mittens pictured.

She included Stabucks mocha mix, 2 really soft feeling soaps that smell really amazingly clean. And Purdy's chocolate! I have lived out west for almost 10 years and I never tried it, I feel a bit embarrassed admitting that.

Also in the post I recieved a really fun package from Amy (http://p3knitter.wordpress.com) There is a whole criteria for the Scavenger Hunt Swap.

1) Something local-The green Bamboo Blen sock yarn From Dyepot.com it's really shiny Ranges from maroon to a really lovely forest green.

2) Something round- A handmade DPN roll! Very retro colour/pattern, which is very me.

3) Something green Ecoganic Pakucho Peruvian cotten 2 cute little hanks, one of the softer cottens I've run into

4) Something related to the letter 'T'- A T mega mix cd which is going to work with me on Friday.

5) Something funny- Little Magnetic notpad that says I'ed rather be knitting (note to self:putting it on the computer tower is bad)

6) Something hard-Chocolate!! Yum!! Cheer you up kinda chocolate!!

7) Spoilers choice (make up a category for your item!) She maded me a hat, No pics of me wearing it but it does fit (Self portaits are not so good and YB makes me look like the triple chin garden gnome)

Both of these packages came at the right time and cheered me up enormously!! I Love the novelty of both these swaps and would recomended them in a heartbeat. Both of the Amy's (Ok I just noticed that they were both named Amy, but I have been writing this off and on for about 5 hours) get totaly votes in the amazingly thoughtful catagory! Yeay!

Leap Day

2008-02-29T09:57:00.003-07:00

I love Leap Day. It's made of awesome. I woke up today in an unshakable good mood. No matter how bad I fuck up this day it'll be 4 more years before I am reminded. ;) Or something like that. One of my favorite ideas is from Frasier a show I never watched but seemed have seen most of the episodes (whats up with that?) Fraiser encouraged everyone to take a "leap of thier own" on leap day. (Not to be confused with take a flying leap). The only thing I can think of this year is spending my tax refund on Lotto tickets, which isn't a leap as much as really stupid. But the day is young (well, youngish am skirting the late for work just on time line at the mo).

Is it possible that my good mood has something to do with March Sweater Madness starting tomorrow? Probably. Or the fact due to severe case of the Murphy's this month (http://www.reallifecomics.com/archive/020604.html and http://www.reallifecomics.com/archive/080206.html) (Which by the way is still going on the central vac burped all the dirt in the canister back onto the carpet 2 days ago looking like a lifesized dustball camel and I ran upstairs to pull the hose and I took out the handrail on the stairs with my hip/butt no sign yet that it may look like a particular landmass yet [a la Rabbitch] went tou yesterday and had a jar of honey glarlic sauce open in my purse soaking my new wallet...I didn't want to use a grocery bag as I was trying to be all eco. throwing out a purse and it's contents is not eco by the way.) ...wait where was I going with this.. Oh yeah due to a severe case of the Murphy's I am taking 6 days off work. The exact wording of the staff was come back when your rested enough you no longer look homicidal. all part of the master plan to get time off. (yeah right)

Edit to Add: I petted a ferret today given my teeth to brain phobia I think it was pretty brave (fyi ferrets smell) maybe if 4 years I'll hold a bunny or be in the same room with a snake (who I am not dating, ahem) Didn't use my tax refund to buy lotto tickets but bought Torchwood, which isn't a gamble as it's a Doctor Who spinoff.

It's Official

2008-02-22T07:38:00.003-07:00

I give up. Will not pass go, definitly not getting $200. Today I officially let the world go by without me. I am staying in my jammies, skipping the shower and hiding under the covers with a tube of cookie dough. I may stay there for a while I haven't decided. My company currently has achieved the level of "broke and dumbassed protection" which apparently means I have a job for a month then we'll probably go through all this again. But as I rejoiced in my ability to buy new glasses, some lovely and charming person broke into our back room and stole my wallet. I just bloody quit. I'ed knit all day but I really don't think I should be allowed near anything pointy.

Edit to add: The day has hit a new low. We are out of cookie dough and I have no debit card.

Cocoa Swap Thanks

2008-02-15T17:33:00.003-07:00

I just want to take time to thank my Swap Partner Cate from http://cate-of-the-no-sheep.blogspot.com/ for being a fabbo spoiler for the cocoa swap.

I apologize for the poor quality of the picture it actually was the best one. It's not too sunny at the moment. There were happy food treats Popcorn, Pepermint Dark Hot Chocolate, Carnation and Marshmellow (I love carnation and marshmellows!) She made me 2 bags, A notion/small project bag and a larger tote, I couldn't get decent photos of the inside but it has these awesome pockets in it for notions and pattern and everything. It rocks so hard (this is a good thing). I also got a kit to make Ice Queen in this amazing teal with beads and stitchmarkers to co-ordinate (she also made the stitch markers and don't I feel horribly untalented now?) And as a tribute to my Dr Who obsession there is a copy of the Rose armwarmers from the Season 2 finale known as the hysterical weepfest. Not shown is a cute little miniature bottle to hold my darning needles (which she also thoughtfully sent along). Why because like a good little girl I put them in the bottle so I wouldn't lose them. And they clanked around and somone (I am thinking the black spoo-monster photographed with the parcel) rolled it under the sofa bed. Yeah. :/ Cate also sent me a lovely blah buster named BUDDY. Buddy shall be returned to my place of work and resume his post as guardian of the computer monitor, which he occupied all day yesterday. Buddy is exceptionally popular at work actually.

The package was wonderful and I love it all dearly and the timing was awesome as it really did pick me up at a time I really needed it. Thanks Cate!!!!

Short Little Cop-out post

2008-02-15T00:01:00.002-07:00

Life hates me. It's true. I know this. I just found out that the company I work for is in recievership. Then it wasn't. Then it was. We won't know if we have a job past next week until next week. Not cool. I ALMOST wish it'ed just file chapter 11 just so I would know for sure. No word on what happens with my workers comp or health insurance. Freaking Irony.

Stupid Irony Get out of My Workman's Comp!

2008-02-07T14:53:00.000-07:00

Well the day I posted that bit about being funnier when I am mad I had a good reason to be by the end of the day. I managed to tip over an "untipable" 140 -odd pound rack onto myself. I caught the thing and tip it back upright but after it slammed into my right forearm and the knuckle on my index finger (if it's the one actually on your hand it it the first or last knuckle?) (also feel free to answer these asides I really am usually curious) So yes that was Irony because really I think I am the only person in the world who DIDN'T see that coming. But then again, I'm an idiot.

And then, (I love my "and then" 's. There are three things in the world when if you time it just right it can almost be like a religious experience, going pee, a Big Mac (or Chocolate) and "And then") I go do the x-ray thing at a clinic and wait wait wait for the results. (hint: still waiting) but I feel sore and kinda tingly so I use one of my dad's exercise balls. Well after about an hour I realize if I am going to manipulate my fingers non-stop I may as well knit. So I knit. And then I stop. And this is how I know I am in hell. It Hurt to stop?!?! %^&%#%$!!! I love knitting but it shouldn't hurt not to knit for 5 mins. And then, (hee) to make matters worse I am knitting sooooo slowly I feel like I am going backward! This sucks.

Thought I'ed share. Blah!

Shamless Promoting of something Pretty

Oh and Michelle at theSweetSheep.com has this amazing Lace kit going (I am plagerizing horribly from the store, hell it's not even plagerizing I'm cut and pasting it!) ALL CAUGHT UP ON PRE ORDERS AND READY TO SHIP!

This kit contains 2 skeins of lace in the Snow Squall colourway, but DOES NOT include Anne's Pattern. Kits will ship as soon as I have them dyed up so that you can have your yarn in time for Anne's finished pattern!

You can see a preview of the pattern here http://knitspot.com/?p=556 I got a chance to hold the yarn in my hot little hands and it's soo very soft and lovely. There will be a square shawl that uses 3 skeins and a triangle version that uses 2 they are $58 and $38 respectively. Know that I've seen it I have to have it! (She knew it when she let me see it too, she can't deny it!)

Also please note I am not on commission or anything it's just really pretty.

Move Over Murphy

2008-02-06T18:24:00.000-07:00

Jinxsa's Law: If you post a tounge in cheek rant about how you are more fun to be around when you are mad, you are pretty much asking the world to shit on you.

First Colollary: This may involve breaking of bones.
Second Colallary: It will always involve Irony
Third Colallary: When you think it's can't get much worse, it'll get a lot worse.

A quick note about rage.

2008-02-05T07:53:00.000-07:00

I have a lot of rage for such a happy person. I think it's a balancing act between my mum and dad's influences actually. However apparently when I am mad I am very funny. I have discovered 3 of the new staff members believe this to be so. This doesn't make for a very good work enviroment. Imagine (stealing shameless from a comic here) I could learn to ski, these people wanting me to be funny so they would take me up to Mt. Sunovabitch. It hasn't been a pleasent few weeks. Noting I can really put my finger on but people are trying to make me grumpy. It's annoying. I am annoyed, doesn't that count? Isn't that enough? (No apparently if I get an ulser I'll be a laugh riot...**grumbles**)

Apparently not.After leaving this less than enouraging comment on Michelle's blog (theSweetSheep.com) about toe-up socks.

(PS While some people can’t get enough of them I think toe up socks are the devil laundry day pantygirddles complete with holes and butt pooch, and yes I have completed 2 pairs of them)

Naturally to help my co-workers out I cast on 2 pairs. One is the Entrelac socks by Eunny Jang and the other is Kaylee by Gigi Silva (aka Momma Monkey of Socktopia) She died of complication from Lupus (or is it just just died from Lupus, I have no idea on the terminology here) There is a few KAL's going on in her honour on Ravelry basically just knit a pattern of hers in purple yarn this month. So I am casting on Kaylee with my very extra special vacation yarn of Socks that Rock in Black Purl. My Entrelac socks are cherry treee hill (who skien thier product so badly they almost made this the funniest day ever) in Neutral and Sweet Sheep's own faerie feet in Drucilla.
http://www.thesweetsheep.com/xcart/product.php?productid=1542&cat=192&page=1

Look toys!!

Zero Pattern Found Here:http://lizville.livejournal.com/100801.html#cutid1

Teeni Turtle pattern found here:http://kristieskids.weebly.com/patterns1.html

(it's towards the bottom of the page)

State of the UFO Address.

2008-01-19T08:52:00.000-07:00

Once again I am basking in the wake of startitis. It's bad. I've broken up with a lot of my knitting as it wasn't getting done or there was something that I had to frog and so forth. So current WIP count isn't as bad as usual.

I have taken steps to ensure that I am finishing more projects in the new year (which wasn't a resolution but would be nice) I joined a few swaps where I have to knit or crochet something to send so must be finished. I Joined about 4 ravelry group alongs that should encourage me to finish more object. The problem is I am solidly a process knitter. a f/o is nice but wouldn't this yarn and pattern be even nicer? *sigh* I am in love with the potential the reality gets messy (oh this may be why I don't date much). Anyways the Ravelry Groups I am in are one that expects a f/o a month the project of your choice. I'm up on that I completed Evangeline (http://www.magknits.com/) out of gifted Malbridgio. (excuse the horrible picture I am just trying to figure out the camera timer It's not easy taking pictures of your own arms!) as well as a funky retro purse for my Harry potter pal. Not pictured are handles I have to go buy them yet. I love this purse so much I made one for me!! (got the pattern from Knitting Daily) Mine didn't felt right. I misxed up a ball of Noro Silk garden without a label for a ball of Noro Keureon...Doi.

I joined a group that is trying to complete a pair of socks a month. It's theme for January is any type of ribbed socks so I am doing Diagonal Rib socks by Ann Budd. Just cast on last night and am doing both at same time. I remember why i don't do that now It tangles and gooeeeesss ssooooo ssssllllooowwww! Am at about 3/4 and inch at best. :/. These will no doubt be short socks. Also using gift yarn in Meilenweit Inca.

Summer Olympics are going on this year I joined the Knitting Olympic Trials (the official kntting Olympics are run by the yarn harlot). I am giong to complete a sweater. I can do it I've done it before but this time I am going to swatch before the contest a bit more thoughly. That;s going to be in August the idea is to pick a knitting challenge so it may not be a sweater after all but some colourwork socks but you have the duration of the summer olympics to complete your project.

I've also diversified my knitting and maximizing time spent on each by spreading them out.. Currently I have a shawl at work out of art yarns regal silk using the Terttu Shawl pattern (http://www.saunalahti.fi/meriam1/ohjeet/terttu/terttu_en.html) I saw someone had made it on LJ's Knitting! and I had the same yarn and the same colourway handy so I decided to make the same shawl. It's nice and I leave it at work to be knit on during breaks and such.

Back of the couch random anytime sitting around knitting is my dk weight Icarus shawl. I work on it when something interesting is on tv or I don't feel like seaching for another WIP. I am about 14 rows away from chart 2. I had another Icarus in lace weight but I unfortuneately got bbq sauce on it and felted the spot while trying to clean it. Le Sigh. This is much thicker and massive. I love it!.

My purse knitting is a pair of Monkey Socks knit with gift yarn-Opal Hand dyed. OMG this yarn is wild! Just bright and rather obnoxious. Naturally I want more of it... It's a bit scratchy but I'm sure it'll soften after a bit of SOAK. I was watching King Kong last night and I was starting the diagonal rib socks but really I should have been knitting this. These socks have been offically dubbed Crazy Apes!

I went to a smaller city near here on Wednesday and stocked up on a bit of kntting boks. I bought lace style and have started a pair of long, long lace gloves. I am using Knit picks Gloss Carribean made out of gift/prize yarn.

I have 3 more projects to make one is a turtle toy for one of my swaps. I have sheep keychain to work out yet and then lastly I found a pattern to make a toy Zero from Nightmare before Christmas. I really want to make it!! Oh and a few toys in progress. I am on a toy kick.

(Edit:Some of the pictures aren't showing up as always with blogger I'll have to try agian tomorrow and hope for the best)
Edit Dec 20: All the pics are posted but for some reason the comments are broken and I am not getting any email addresses on them...this is wierd.

Scavenger Hunt.

2008-01-19T08:38:00.001-07:00

1) Do you knit, crochet or both? How long have you been doing it?
I can do both and I enjoy both in thier places. I have knit for about 4 years and I have crochet for about 1(ish)

2) What is on your needles/hook right now?
Please see above post about the state of the UFO's

3) What is the most frequently used tool in your knitting bag?
I usually can't find my knitting bag......darning needles and tape measures.

4) What are your 3 favorite yarns (fiber type or brand)? What are your 3 least favorite? I like sock yarn in superwash, I like silk, and I realized I have zero dk weight in the stash.

5) What is your favorite color?
Secondary colours and tersiary colours like pink, purple, teal, orange, green

6) If you had a 5 minute shopping spree in your LYS, how would you plan your attack?
I'ed head for items that had a lot of quantity in certain colours and score enough of a dye lot for a sweater or 2 as well as something for a few larger shawls, kneehighs (everything I like needs way more yarn than I seem to have)

7) What is your favorite FO and why? (post a pic if you have it!)
I never seem to finish anything....I finished a gift but I can't post it yet.

8) What are your favorite things to knit/crochet?
Toys to crochet and I like knitting them too. Anything that has a challenging pattern.

9) Do you collect anything?
I have a modest stuffed polar bear collection

10) What are your five favorite things (not necessarily knitting related)?
I'm such a pop culture slut so I'll say:
doctor who, harry potter, tanya huff's novels, my internet connection so I can watch my tv shows and my pets (4 cats and 2 dogs)

11) Are you on Ravelry? What is your ID?
Jinxsa

12) Do you drink tea/coffee/cocoa?
Black tea like earl grey and basic hot chocolate. Also I drink more Coke Zero than is smart.

13) Favorite Sweets?
Caramel! Lindt's double milk chocolates.

14) Any allergies?
Shellfish and laundry soap.

15) Do you have pets? kids?
4 cats 2 dogs and I take care of my parents.

Hot Cocoa Scavenger Hunt

2008-01-07T22:36:00.001-07:00

1. Who's favorite animal is an Otter?
Anne K
2. Name someone who prefers whipped cream with their hot cocoa
Geraldine P.
3. Find 3 people who live outside of the United States
Alex E. Lyndsey-Jane C Bianca B.
4. Name a fan of Harry Potter
Devin H.
5. Name someone who crochets
Charity R.
6. Name someone who DOES NOT have a healthy supply of notions
Tricia R.
7. Name someone who has NOT put up their questionnaire yet (just put a date
with your answer in case they put it up after seeing their name listed somewhere ;-) )
Natalie M. (Jan 7/8)
8. Who likes to have Kahlua, Baileys, or Peppermint Schnapps in their cocoa?
Annemarie M.
9. Name someone who knits fingerless gloves as a 'quick knit'
Tanya M.
10.Name someone who's looking forward to gardening this spring.
Kena M.
11.Who's favorite way to drink cocoa is with a gorgeous Frenchman, while overlooking the eiffel tower from a French Cafe? (I'm right there with you... well at the table next to yours!)
Kris L.
12.Name someone who's favorite animal is NOT a dog or house cat
Kristen M.
13. Name someone who's favorite treat is NOT chocolate.
Bea R.
14. Who plays Candyland?
Criquette
15. Name someone who DOESN'T get the winter blahs
Jenny S.

Other news, I'll probably be making a Harry Pottercharacter blog for my Harry Potter Sock kit swap which I will link here. Also for some reason my comments aren't giving me email address' so for my Cocoa swap pal (upstrem) I prefer mint, caramel and even gingerbread flavours. I don't know about Mexican Hot chocolate at the only spicy thing I like is cinnamon. Aparently there is black licorice flavoured hot chocolate out there! Blerg... Honestly My favourite of all time is Carnation with marshmellows due to the nostalgia factor ;>

FO ALERT! My eevangeline fingerless mitts are done (http://www.magknits.com/) no pics posted because, well have you ever tried to take pictures of your own arms?

2008-01-05T19:08:00.000-07:00

Cocoa:
1. What is your favorite way to drink cocoa? Prepared with milk? Water? from home made recipe or store bought?, In a tea cup, or big mug?
I love a big mug! I make my hot chocolate with water then add some milk or cream.
2. Marshmallows or whipped cream?
Yes, at home usually wite marshmellows

Yarn/Knitting/Crochet:
1. What is your favorite type of yarn? In what colors?
I like more traditional yarn, most novelty yarns are a turn off for me as they aren't as interchangeable. I love noro style striping. I love bright secondary and tersiary colours. (Orange Teal Green and so forth)
2. Do you knit or crochet (or both)?
I can do both but I knit much more comfortably then I can crochet.
3. What are your favorite type of needles, would you like to try something new?
I love glass needles!! ZOMG! So amazing! I have 2 pairs of circs and I love them. I am pretty open to anything duable. When my needles warp in my grip they get chucked out. (stupid Crystal palace) Oddly enough I like Brittany Birch.. Oh and I have never used any wooden crochet hooks...
4. Do you have a healthy supply of notions?
I am pretty well stocked tho I can never find anything when I need it...
5. What one thing do you keep thinking you need to buy for your knitting habit (outside of yarn)?
I keep thinking I need one more project bag (I have 8 already and don't need another , tho I'll probably buy one everytime I see one...) I really need a book on Granny Square patterns (I <3>
6. What is your favorite 'quick knit/crochet' pattern (quick gratification)
So far I really love Evangeline @ Magknits so I'll say fingerless mittens and stuffed toys.

Miscellaneous
1. What is your favorite thing to do in the Winter?
Stay inside in bad weather watch movies with the family.
2. What is your favorite animal?
Polar bears and cats.
3. Do you get the 'winter blahs'?
Not unless it's all muddy and brown. Snow cheers me right up!
4. What is your favorite way to beat the blahs?
If it's after work it's a walk and my ipod. If I'm at home it's Doctor Who and video games (I have a Wii, DS, PS2 and an X-box 360)
5. What is the thing you are most looking forward to this spring?
A proper 2 week vacation in may! (I hope)
6. What are your favorite treat?
Caramel and popcorn.
7. What is your favorite board game?
Traditionally I like Jigsaw puzzles and non-traditionally I love Arkham Horror, Chez Geek and Munchkin
8. Do you have any children (furry or human)?
4 cats 2 dogs plus I take care of my parents.
9. Do you have any allergies or special considerations you partner should know about?
Shellfish and most laundry soaps. Oh and most antibacterial stuff too. I am not a fan of most nuts.

New Resolution

2008-01-04T21:59:00.000-07:00

As of January 4th I have added 2 new resolutions for 2008. I must occasionally finish an object. This means I will probably be manking many short projects (hats! many hats!) to confuse the "OMG! Look over there it's something shiny!! tendencies I have in every cell of my body, including my hair. (especially my hair!)

To stop reading Dear Abby. I never mean to read it but if I happen to be reading the news (paper or online) I usually stumble across it and I must find out what the provocative headline means. It never fails to depress me. I don't mean casual, oh, that's so sad.. But actual depths of despair. It's just so sad.

Oh and so far on my resolutions...I have lost and regained my 5 pounds already...it's going to be a long year isn't it?

New Year's Resolutions

2008-01-01T07:53:00.000-07:00

I just have 2, lose 5 pounds (which since I gain 5 exactly every year since I was 25...) and I want to dye yarn, even just once. There was a third but I can't remember it....YB might. What's are yours?

Did my last resolution involve this?

Stupid Customer Tricks, Holiday Edition

2007-12-23T21:41:00.000-07:00

Poeple aren't just busier at Christmas they are dumber. I work retail - I know this. It gets proven every damn year. I had a ...particulairly bad day earlier in the month. Every single thing that could happen happened. Halfway through the day I was certifiably insane I sware if I had killed someone I'ed have totally gotten off. No group of 12 people could look at the rampant idiocy I had to put up with and say, "Oh she knew what she was doing when she put the hanger through that guy's throat." I actually feel rather cheated that i didn't do something like go and get smashed on tequila on my lunch break. I had the perfect excuse and honestly, if it happens again I will so be on the bell tower with a rifle. (Although I think the tallest building in the town is 5 stories and that is the hospital, did you know there is not one escalator in the whole of my city?!? It's so wierd when I get to the big city I go to use one and I realize I have forgotten howto use one ... I just keep kinda missing that key stepping on point ... so embarassing I keep wanting to apologize tot he people behind me and tell them "I used to live where there were REAL shopping malls, honest") Anyways back to the day from hell.

It actually started the night before. I had a woman come into my store to get a refund. No big deal, she bought the pants a week ago, never wore them, has the reciept. She, however, is carrying a bag from another store this is unusual but doesn't mean anything, hell, people have grabbed the first bag they saw and brought in returns in KFC bags (thankfully ungreasy ones) But I check and I see bugundy. We don't have anything in the store that is burgundy. I check the tag. Yup it's from another store. Happens all the time. I say "I'm sorry ma'am, this is from another store. It's just stores to your right towards Sears." Now I am aware it isn't my fault but really people like it when you say your sorry. (And I mean it too, unless they get snarky and ask me if I mean it because then I won't anymore, it's a catch-22). She insists saying she has a reciept. She pulls it out it has the other sore's name on it. The pants are labeled with the other name, the bag has the other store's name, the reciept is from another store- Ladies and gentlemen, we have a trifecta! So I am still calm. I am not laughing at her, I am not upest. I haul out another pair of pants and show her the label, show her the bag and our reciepts, none of them match hers. She gets pretty damn annoyed inisting she bought them in my store and I'm just being difficult...Now at this juncture I'ed like to point out this wasn't someone who was elderly, possibly confused. This woman works in an office for the provincial government. I do believe she is in fact literate. For her sake I was hoping she was simply really, really, drunk (this was actually before the postal incident). I point out that we only sell items with other brands possibly once a year in January, every piece of clothing we sell has our own brand labelled on it. I offer to close my store and walk her the 2 doors down to the other store. She starts to think that perhaps she isn't in the right store after all but it's still not her fault, so decideds to shift her position. "You are owned by the same company!" I mull this over. We have paint on the walls in vaugely the same colour this is the only thing we really have in common. I point out that we are the only retail outlet owned by our parent company which deals in morgages and real estate and that if she was looking to sell her house I could possibly hook her up. I was a bit sarcastic there. She points out that there are similarities on the reciept. Like, you know, the ADDRESS. *sigh* I point out that we also have a grocery store in the mall and she couldn't return , say a spoilt ham, to our store either. She snapped. "Now you are just being silly. I want to see the manager you aren't being helpful at all." I point out that I am a manager (assistant but a manager none the less) and the only one there. Apparently I am lying about this as well. "Well there has to be someone in here to talk to!" I said the only thing that came to mind, "Two doors to your left next to Sears." She storms off. I just about die laughing. So many people think that if you work retail it's because your not smart enough to "get a real job" people with "real jobs" couldn't do my job. Next day (the day from hell) starts with this customer calling me up to bitch about me, to apparently, me. Okaaayy. She felt obligated to tell me that the reciept she had had the wrong phone number on it (it was for the sotre that issued the reciept shockingly enough) and she had to look up our store phone number in the phone book, so apparently she CAN read. She just wanted to tell me that she had written a letter to head office on our company website and she hopes I get fired. I quite reasonably ask which stores website? and she hung up on me. (I checked with the other store to give them the heads up, if they had a complaint registered against them they should know the details because it wasn't thier fault, apparently this story circulated about the other companies' Head Office and she did write a complaint about me to them and they laughed so hard tho not to the woman's face) So yeah I am calling our boss and the other stores' boss to tell them what is going on.

And then, I had a lady come in, and she is really sweet and nice but she does have a bit of dementia and can be hard to predict, comes in ooohs and awes over the new pants saying she needs new pants but she can't try them on because she has a cold... Now if it was a turtleneck (don't think about that one too hard if you have a weak stomach) I'ed understand but pants? She left presubably blowing her nose on her stretch flare jeans...

AND then, I have a guy walk in. I love guys. The come in and they are either so cute and clueless or to the point. I want this and this. Both of which I just love. This guy comes in and says (and this is exactly what he says) "I want to get something for my wife. She shops here all the time. Pick something out for about $200 and I'll be back in about an hour" And that is all he says. I have no idea who his wife is, what size she is, I got nothin. So I go back to trying to get ahold of people in charge of websites and folding sweaters.

AND THEN, (trust me when I tell people about my day they just gasp everytime I say and then, there were a lot of and then's that day) I have another customer come in, who is a little off. She wants the pants in the window. I show it to her and she gets really mad. And I don't know why. "I can't wear pants with zippers!" Cuz apparently I was supposed to know this. Thinking rather fast (and at this point I was more than slightly impressed with myself for being able to think at all) I say if she is allergic to metal we have plastic coated zippers on another style (yeah I know, impressive, huh?) That's when she drops this little bombshell on me. "Women aren't supposed to wear zippers on the FRONT of thier pants. I don't just like it says in the Bible." Bwah? Now I skipped the last few... decades... of church but I think I'ed remember that little rule and if somehow someone discovered a mistranslation and Moses came down with a tablet that said " In 1914 when the zipper is invented (I looked it up) thou women shalt not wear them in the front of thier pants", instead of say that adultary one, I'ed like to think that that would make the news. CNN, the Times, something. As we have no side zips in the store I rather meliciously send her to another store who has a clerk who annoys me.

AND THEN, the guy "shopping" for his wife comes back. And asks me what the hell I've been doing for the last hour as I haven't picked anything out. I point out that I don't know who his wife IS. He says, quite irritably, that his wife shps in the store all the time and I should know her. I ask if he comes in with her. He acts like it was the dumbest question he had ever heard and/or I have just insulted his masculinity and says no. So I stare at him (which I think you will agree was the safest course of action) and he twigs (hala-freaking-lluja). "You don't know who she isss...." I shake my head. "Oh well I got her a watch already anyways, nevermind."

We opened at 10 and all this happened by 12:30 when an associate was scheduled. I apparently looked slightly scary. This is a younger girl with a great attitude, not much phases her but yeah she was all about backing away slowly fron the crazy person.

I went on lunch. AND THEN, (I feel like I am stuck in that Dude, Where's My Car? movie) someone came in trying to return a 3 year old coat that didn't fit his girlfriend, that was from another manufactuor/retail chain. (He came back in last week apparently he forgot what he had bought her and she asked him to return the brown coat back and just brought us the first one he saw, judging by the smell of weed on him this wasn't a shock) I wasn't there but was told when I'ed be back. He didn't come back that day.

And then, I finally get ahold of the boss and tell her about my day and the complaint VIA website, which may or may not come to us. She damn near dies laughing and asks if it's a full moon. Nope but after reviewing my day I hvae come to the conclusion. I know exactly what happened. It wasn't a full moon. My city was hosting the annual full frontal lobodomy survivor reunion.

I can always count on ,my friends to put it in perspective. At least no one asked me for a white shirt with white stripes (http://jinxsa.blogspot.com/2007/07/do-you-have-this-in-white.html)

I am why my dad has no hair.

2007-12-17T19:16:00.000-07:00

I was a horribly confusing child. Wicked smart with attention span of a fruit fly and the memory of a gnat. We were discussing Christmas's when I was little the other day and my father reminded me of the horrible 6 through 8 years. 6 was the year I realized elves made the toys. This had a bit of fall out, 1. I could ask for really expensive stuff cuz elves made it and 2. it made me question why santa gave me stuff with PACKAGING?! Elves make offical packaging? It didn't seem very plausible. I spent most of Christmas #6 starting at the toy Santa brought me contemplating the packaging. I didn't want to open the toy because I was trying to figure the whole thing out. I didn't actually voice this thought aloud until a few months later when I finally removed it from it's box.
Year 7 santa brought me a toy with NO PACKAGING now you would think that this would make sence to crazy smart/suspicious 7 year old me. Alas it was the 80's and my reaction was (literally) Santa makes cheap knockoff counterfit toys!!!!! Again the parents are really at a lost. Year 8 was a bit funny. Santa brought me books and a fairly generic tradtional sled. He's been bringing me books and dvds ever since. I wonder if I should report him for copyright fraud?

Not to be all Bash-y but I have Some Complaints about Canada Post

2007-12-05T08:55:00.000-07:00

I think for the most part Canada Post does a really good job. They have a lot of packages and letters mailed everyday. The mind wobbles. But in light of my last serious "issue" with them I've discovered that really postal systems are the same all over the world. I have come across a rather glaring omittion in thier service. They don't inform us if they "dispose" of our packages. Case in point, my monkey sock package I sent to Singapore. I included some really swank organic tea. It came in a tin tube. Canada Post in it's infinite wisdom x-rayed my package and decided it was a pipebomb. Yes boys and girls, a freaking pipebomb. So you know what they did? The detonated it. Blew it up and poured fire retardant stuff all over it. We will not discuss the decission making process of "I think it's an expolosive lets's blow it up before it...explodes.." I'ed like you all just to sit back and think of the poor little socks that went poof. The first pair of socks where I really "got" the kitchner stitch. Sigh.

Ultimately I can see (if I freaking squint real hard) thier point. It was pipe looking and had string and stuff inside. I could have been a bomb ... if you squint real hard and don't use any of the fancy equiptment you have been charging taxpayers for since 9/11. My real problem with the whole thing was I didn't know what had happened until I got a wtf? message from the swap matron/mom/leader/insert title of choice. Canada Post gives tracking on all packages for free (yeay) and I knew I was in trouble when the operator went to get a supervisor (it ranks right up there with upholstry and dentist) and she very apologetically told me my package was all poof. Now my point, and for once I have one, is that my freaking return address was on the package. If you deside to explode something shouldn't there be some kind of Hallmark card automatically shipped out??!?!? A form letter?!?! Something??!?! Tell you what Posties I'll write it out for you all you have to do is cut and paste ok?

"We're very sorry to inform you that as we aren't British we can't recognize tea when we see it. Seeing a tin of tea made us think there was a small bomb in the package, suspecting that you maybe shipping expolsives to another country we did nothing to contact you nor, [apparently] turn your name over to the police. Confering amongst ourselves we got a hold of some C4 and made it to a really big bomb then blew it up, it was a really cool expolsion our team was making bomb explosion noises all day. As a bonus to you we think some of the handmade socks you sent to Singapore got there express instead of regular post like you paid for, you cheapskate."

There. Do I have to do everything around here?

Life Happens...

2007-12-01T09:50:00.000-07:00

...and I suppose that's better then the alternative, really. It's been pretty crazy.Dad is ok but not great. He had a birthday this week which he hearted his presents. I do presents good. I have abandoned all hope of doing any Christmas knitting. It's been ok but, I dunno, odd. We aren't busy there is almost nothing to do but I can't keep up and I don't know why. Probably because of the insane people. Which I will get to later suffice to say the city was the proud host of the Full Fronal Lobodomy Survivor Convention.

This post isn't going to be about anything but a much belated Thanks to my SP11 Anna from http://www.knitandknag.blogspot.com/. Who really thoughtful and patient. She sent me an amazing last package. For the record Anna is the genius behind the Mystic Waters KAL. I have always had the greatest pals. Am so lucky.

The Hatcho is really bright and I love it. It's tightly wound which means it'll match me in another week or so ;> The Manos Del Uruguay is going to match my mom's coat. (What's the tack factor on making gifts from gift yarn? Yeay? Nay? There were darning needles and a tape measure (see she knows me so well) And a Pooh Little Instruction book, which should give me a little zen through the holidays (I need a little zen ... I was going to say "now and then" but I can't rhyme without feeling at least a bit apologetic). So much thanks and go and give Anna her props!! She rules!

Catch up

2007-11-11T17:58:00.000-07:00

It's already time to play catch up and it's no where near Christmas yet. This is very un-bodeful. It's been a bit of a car wreck of a week. I Got a lovely little present from Kev, my sp11 in the form of a glttery halloween card and a needle guage, which actually came in handy the day after I got it (go Kev!) I still haven't gotten the camera and the pc to talk to each other **mutter, bitch, whine, curse** I still have to finish mom's Biday sweater sleeve (I had lost the last ball of yarn but found another at the store so yeay) and YB's present is late but should be done soon. I stayed up until stupid o'clock finishing another present but that person was too sick to come to the party... I can't win.

All the packages I am expecting are arriving ate or delayed. Friday I think I found out why. I came home form work near 7pm and the postal carrier was delivering the mail to our boxes....I go in get the mail key talk to my parents and go get the mail. The guy was drunk and still drinking while in the van!!! If I hadn't been in shock I'ed have called the cops but I was really just stunned. Tuesday (Mondy is a holiday I think for the post office) I'm going to be reporting him. It was just amazing, he was driving erratically and had the inflated drunk ego (dude don't do the "I can see you checking me out" head bob when you are drunk and sitting in a postal van.....it's aint like it's a Porshe... or like you aren't a complete idiot...)

Also my throat hurts and I am pouting.

More Christmas Knitting to follow....

Happy Halloween

2007-10-31T22:25:00.001-06:00

It was a pretty eventful Halloween this year. I decorated my store window and won 3rd place ($50 bucks) so that was amazing. I got a picture of it on my camera phone (oh got a blackberry style phone this week) and I haven't figured out how to get it off of it yet. I spent a lot of my day off at work fixing up the store. :( I was dressed up as Tonks this year and I apparently look very awesome with pink hair. In fact, I have to say it suits me better than my natural colour. It was a rather fun discovery. I took my glasses off for most of the day if I ever was able to have bangs I'ed totally switch to contacts, but as I have naturally curly hair, uuuh no. But yes it was cool. Again Pictures forthcomming.

I also had a "Crookshanks" with me, in the form of my cat OHbz. Ohbz loves to duck outside when you aren't watching careful enough but today..oh no..wailing shaking and carrying on. "Heart of a lion that one" Spoo also not with the outside thing. We had 8 kids come to the house. 8. I don't know why I bother at all really. I sat outside as the cats and dogs don't need to be any more disturbed then they already are. But no kids.

I wanted Halloween fun! So I went reverse trick or treating. Which I sware I may do every darned year. I went door to door on my little part of the street giving out candy to the people in the houses. It was so much fun! I'm 30, I don't trick or treat anymore (ok I don't look 30 and the stitches on my chin were taken out and I look like I have a huge pimple but still, I'm too old to go door to door for candy. I'ed kick my ass) So it became the Great Treat Exchange of 2007.
"Here is some chocolate"
"Ok Thanks, have some chips"
It was soo funny how many people just laughed thier heads off. It made it all so very much more fun. Next year I think I am going to arrange grown-up trick or treat and the kids can stay home and hand out the candy as they aren't going out anyways. I know the mall gets 5000 kids, and most stores only have about 1000 treats max., but really...why aren't they trick or treating anymore?

For LB cuz he complains.

2007-10-20T07:59:00.000-06:00

Humour Where for art thou...?

2007-10-19T21:52:00.000-06:00

Still haven't regained the sence of humour. No Idea where it went. I even checked under the couch cushions as that is where everything dissappears to. My sofa is the black hole of Calcutta. I once lost an entire cat between those bad boys.

I now have a giant tv. I was watching a movie today and I really like the big picture. It was odd tho, halfway through the film I stopped thinking about how huge my tv is. (The first few days I just giggled and said "big" a lot). I am wondering how big my tv would have to be before I stopped taking the big for granted. Apparently bigger than my fireplace!

Mom's b-day sweater didn't get done in time. I have a few stitches on my arm and chin, while the chin ones are itchy and are covered in Hello Kitty band-aids at all times. The arm is really sore (also covered with hello kitty or sponge bob, which glow in the dark). I thought it was infected but it's a combination of my being allergic to bandaids (the plastic kids ones are usually ok, if i use an adult cloth one I think I'ed just prefer to bleed to death) and also the fact I have been using my arm and building a ginormous tv stand. So knitting has stalled and stopped. It just sorta hurts. But mom is ok with it, as long as I stop making her look at the stitches ;>. By the end of the week I hope to have mastered washing the hair in the bathtub with one hand, so far it's me getting soap in my eyes and yelling a lot. I'ed offer to take a video as I am sure it's hysterical but I'm not that friendly. Last time I even managed to pull the shower curtain rod with the curtain down on myself. I am charting out a new design for dad's headmaster blanket to act as a needlework pattch. The new design has me knitting the Hogwarts crest onto a blanket. I hope it works out well. For hsi birthday I hope to crank out some socks. I am planning to stitch an "R" and a "L" on each toe as his left sock will be bigger due to swelling.

I am planning a day trip to Calgary with YB in November. Disney Store and Yarn. Perfect for Christmas. ;> Much Disney Store love! More Yarn love! Maybe some Swiss Chalet love...oh please let there be Swiss Chalet love!! Mongolian Grill Love with Cinnabuns and ...I am going to need a few days up there after all just to eat all the food....

For Y/B

2007-10-12T10:33:00.000-06:00

**snork**

Inspiration, not so much

2007-10-11T18:47:00.000-06:00

I am sitting here and thinking about what I want to blog about. I have a lot of things I want to tell people but I lack any inspiration in making it amusing or even entertaining. I'm trying here but it's pretty rough. Things are going ok. There are some good things, some bad and some both:

I have some yarn money for the first time in weeks (yeay) this is money for yarn not earmarked for swaps.
I taught 2 people at work how to knit and since the 3rd already knew, I am pretty damn happy. One is definitly a Knitter. She is getting a bit obsessive. Yeay!!
My Christmas knitting is behind but It's becomming less behind, which is a bonus. Birthday knitting is going well except for a blanket I want to knit.
I am crocheting more and with a degree of confidence I never have previous-while this isn't saying much it's saying a lot at the same time. I may crochet the blanket for dad's birthday. Knitting a whole blanket doesn't sound like any fun at all. Crochet will at least be challenging, even if it's basic single crochet ;>
I got to spend 3 whole days/night doing things other than being hiome. This is both good and bad. Played a table top game called Arkham horror, much love. It makes me want to read a little HP Lovecraft.
Work isn't crazy busy yet, which again both good and bad, I am getting concerned about how not busy it is. I know it's dead when I have time to worry about how dead it is.
I have thrown out my hip and am now gimping along BUT that gives me an excuse not to go out on my days off so it looks like 4 days of pj 's and knitting starting sunday (football!) but I have a dr appt on monday and I have a 52" tv and hdtv satellite being installed, bit happy about that too. Now I just need to get a few knitting shows on the tivo!

I would blog stuff but my knitting mojo has slowly been replaced with crochet lust and swatches ain't that interesting OR they are gifts, and I have it on authority people do peek at my blog. Still I shall post again soon and hopefully have a sense of humour or whatever my own brand of manic meyhem can be called.

Secreyt Pal Package !!!

2007-10-01T07:53:00.000-06:00

My Secret Pal, whom I call Kev, Sent this amazing package last week. It has this toasty warm autumnal coloured yarn. She was thinking possibly scarf/hat and even included her personal scarf recipie but people: it do be getting cold out, and me, I need MITTENS. But here is y\the twist I want to put a ipod pocket inside the mittens. I have less than no idea how I am going to DO that...but it's what I need as the cold weather will my little pink tunemaker (which also plays videos, and the pink was a breast cancer special item ;>)DIE. With 2 balls there will be enough for a matching hat, Perhaps Foliage??

The needles are a really amazing frosted pink colour and they are the recommended size for the yarn. It was this whole fall knitting kit theme which was cool. There is a Tape measure (which is residing with my sweater in progress (if anyone wants to send me a present a box of tape measures would do nicely...they migrate and get chewed, the cats leave my yarn alone but the tape measures and circs...they get played with and on one memorable occasion yanked out of sock in progress)There is also a really amazing pair of scissor. They are little and wicked sharp. I used it to trim the ends of the sweater in progress and it was like butter. I sware I was looking for more ends to trim. It was so wicked cool. From my what, 2 weeks as a seamstress (a poor one no less)I developed an appreciation for sharp scissors these are amazing. They are made by craft medley and are called a cut above. Go buy some, seriously.

Thanks Kev It was a real treat getting this, I love it!!

EDIT: OMG it's my cervical cancer of the molar colours!!! I just realized that looking back!! Extra yarn love (yes I may have hugged it a little, shuddup)

Is this on?

2007-09-29T22:02:00.000-06:00

Hi-Ho Jinxsa de Knitter here! (Dad bought season 2 Muppet show a few weeks ago send all hate mail about occasionally muppetry to him, oktksbai)

Well it's been a fun week here. I have had nothing but problems with the computer that started off mildly annoying, (hey why does explorer shut down when I go into anything related to blogger?) to extreme wtf?!? (why is my pc doing nothing but reboot after reboot. YB called me Friday to find out why he could hear me cursing from the other side of the city... my isp has renamed me the evil bitch godess of death with HP building me a lovely little shrine with the same monkier. In my defence HP sent me to 6 different operators ncluding a memerable moment with someone who didn't speak any english in some scandanavian sounding place... I think he was in the kitchen, cuz there was banging. I was really hoping they would pull a Cancer Clinic and send me to the office of the present of the company cuz by then I had a lot to say. But long story not so short I got it working enough to make 2 restore disks and I have now managed to do a full restore. I was terrified of doing it cuz last time the pc ended up a doorstop ;/ but it succeded. Working with HP and my ISP we figured out it was the antivirus I pay my ISP monthly for that turned my pc into the darkest corner of technology. My doom had nothing on this. The bright spot was the fact one of the isp guys said b0rked. Then after my phone died after an hour and a half with this guy I tried to get him again, dude you don't know me I want to talk to the guy I know, but alas it wasn't meant to be and I had to deal with new guy. When saying that I had nothing against him I let slip it was mainly cuz the guy had said b0rked that I was so attached. He then thought I was, like, going to tell or something. (CUE 8 YEAR OLD VOICE THERE) New guy then trys to tell be b0rked was really a technical term (oh maybe the swedish chef is working for HP then!!!). But alas 4 scary days later where i could only google, some yahoo and ravelry (thank god!!) oh and hearts, which meh, I'm more a freecell kinda girl, I have a working computer which looks like ass. And I have lost a ton of links, backgrounds, icons, ect. Also it looks like ass. IT BEARS REPEATING OK. Tomorrow I'll reinstallthe camera speaking softwear and I can show you the pretty gear my sp sent me and I got last Sunday (Why does my postal people deliver packages on Sunday?)Yeah I'ed smack me.

Anyways ::waves:: here I are!!

In place of doing my real job...

2007-09-13T18:41:00.000-06:00

It's been a bad day at work. I don't want to really deal with it anymore. And from the looks of it I won't have to. I want to just sit and knit tonight. Actually I want to sit and knit and watch football but the NFL is being less than obliging, don't they know I've had a hard day? I want hard knitting. I want to really just take this hard scary knitting and beat it down. I can so this. Of course I have no really hard knitting. Well I thought it was hard...then I started it...now it's significantly less hard. Drat.

For Example: Dark Mark Illusion Scarf

Once, omg how on earth do you keep track of all these rowns now, satisfying but a little *yawn*

Next Up: Semi-Complicated Floral Basket Shawl

Very complicated to start (well I had to start it about 3 times) now I wonder whats the big deal? Well I wonder about the big deal while worrying it's still going to look like ichiban after blocking actually.

Wisp is garter stitch and 1 row lace repeat.

I have other knits on the go (Christmas knitting shhhh) but all really plain stuff. I want to do an entrelac blanket for my dad but can't find a pattern that doesn't start off with triangles. :/ And I suppose I can always start this for my mom

(pattern avail at http://www.berroco.com/exclusives/valpuri/valpuri.html )

But honestly I think I may just finish sketching to make my own version of this. The swatch yarn is not working but my old standby should work.

Oh and just to show you how much else I hae laying around on the needles here's a shot of my Lelah top.

SP 11 Contest #2

2007-09-07T08:22:00.000-06:00

Am being a very bad blogger but waiting to hear some good news..or not... There has been stealthy knitting but sadly the weather isn't co-operating and all my photos look GREEN. Which I'ed like but the items are orange and a marled pink and brown mix... so no.

So to save the day here comes the SP 11 contest!!

1. What is the one knitting accessory you could not live without?

a darning needle, I usually go and buy in bulk because I am forever losing them.

2. If you're heading on vacation, do you take knitting with you? If so, how much and what type of project?

Many projects, a sock a sweater a skirt. I think I packed 3 projects for a day trip to Calgary.

3. Where have you travelled to that you'd consider your favorite spot?

I don't know about favourite, probably any place in public where people ask me questions about my knitting. But I get the most done in the backroom at work on breaks.

4. What is your favorite knitting book at the moment? Do you own it?

I don't have a favourite per se. I am currently lusting after Romantic Knits and the Barbara Walker Treasuries. Oh and Handknit Holidays as if the happy news comes in I shall be broke for Christmas. ;>

5. Do you listen to podcasts? Which is your favorite(s)?

My favourite listening matieral while knitting is soaps like Dallas, and Dark Shadows. Oddly enough audio books and podcasts are too distracting.

6. If you could only knit with 1 color for the rest of your life, what color would that be?

I'ed die.

7. If you were far into a project and then noticed a mistake near the beginning what would you do?

I wouldn't care much unless it was something really bad. If it was and not fixable with an hours or 2's work I'ed frog the project and start something new. I'ed probably be bored starting the pattern over.

8. Where is the most unsual spot you've ever knit?

job interview, not for a knitting store. Of course I didn't really want the job after I talked to the interviewer, but I did get a call back....either that or waiting after going through airport security for my friend to get through with my heavy 1.75mm addi turbo dpns. **SNORK**

Haven't I been here before?

2007-08-27T15:54:00.000-06:00

So I went to the dentist the other day. I hate going to the dentist. No one likes it, everyone dreads it. Me I contemplate walking in front of cars on the way there to get out of it. Been hit by 8 cars in my life, what's one more? The only thing that would be worse than going to the dentist, is going to the dentist and everyone is in a bunny costume. And I've had that nightmare about 9 times in the past 2 weeks...Seriously.

What is the worst thing that can happen right, pain and money that could have been spent on yarn hemrraging out of my wallet. You get over pain and sadly the money would be spent anyways. Everyone (or damn near) said, what's the worst that will happen? It won't kill you. One astute observer said, hey at least he lets you knit. (He didn't but this time I had big shiny metal needles not cute baby plastic ones....so I'll forgive him this time). It wasn't pleasent. There was a great deal of notes and x-rays. Then an exam and more x-rays. And more x-rays, and more x-rays. 16 X-rays of one back molar. And to compound my misery it was the pinch X-ray slide. Yeah THAT one... So final the x was aptly rayed and I was asked to wait for him in his office. Let me explain something to you about dentists, at no time do you want to warrent uppulstry... it's not a good sign. So we go into the expensive part, my rootcanal need finishing and it's infected, the crown needs doing, I need another rootcanal and a few fillings. So basically this is going to cost me a bundle... and a half... AND THEN he asks me about the whole cancer thing. When did I have surgury, chemo, pills blah, basically last surgury was Feb 14 waited 2 months and was given the all clear on the cervical cancer thing, yeay. So now I am freezing my ass off in this office with walls and real furniture, feeling socially awkward discussing my crotch with a guy who specializes in teeth. I am getting a little worried about how he's planning to go about fixing this root canal thing. Turns out I have cysts under my wisdom teeth... about then I start fantasizing about attacking this really nice guy with his own stapler. He's sending the x-rays to a specialist as I may have to have a biopsy, on my freaking molars.

I'm pretty upbeat and positive. I mean in a certain way it's pretty damn funny. Only I could go to the dentist and find out I may have cervical cancer of the molar. Do they even have wrist bands for cervical/molar cancer? If not can I pick the colour?? More than slightly depressed tho to find in less than 6 months I am right back to where I started only with a huge dental bill in front of me. My biopsy better be scheduled when I can do some Christmas shopping!!

I pick peachy verigated with stong yellowy orange... **pout**

No Sheep Swap, Joy or something with apt punctuation to make this sound happy.

2007-08-26T07:51:00.000-06:00

I hates punctuation. It makes me sound silly. ;/ I can do that on my own, I don't need no stinking dots. Why yes, I am in a mood, no, not a particularily good one. I'll blog about it another time. Right Now I want to give huge and OMG so belated mad props (YB you have permission to smack me if I ever say that in R/L) to my downstream pal Chrissie from the No Sheep Swap. She sent me a package in July and I thought I blogged it but it's not there. So I suck. Huge. Not in a nice dinner and a movie kinda way either. In a "You call yourself a Canadian you loser" kinda way actually. I want to take the time, forsaking my am caffine out of self-induced penence, to tell you how cool the yarns she got me are.

The first off it this feaky (I love freaky) little novelty yarn. It's frizzy and bright and mutli- coloured...and wound before I got my swift... but so amazingly awesomely ME. I think there is about 120-150 yards... I am desperately hoping enough to crochet a scarf out of. I don't know why It just needs to be crocheted (how do you past tence crochet as a verb...? that just doesn't look right). I'll show you the scarf I am thinking of and you can tell me I'm mental at the end of the post.

Next I got Thursday these two luxe cones of laceweight yarn. 70% silk and 30% linen. Really tiny thready cobweb stuff the cream and more like traditional laceweight for the blue white cone. These were bought in Tokyo. Dudes! There was an enclosed pattern by cat bohrdi (I don't like capitalizing her name, she has this kinda e.e. cumming vibe doesn't she?) for a lavender eyepillow (http://www.interweave.com/knit/interweave_knits/pdf_files/EyePillow.pdf) If I hold the yarns together and double it up there should be enough to make it, according to Chrissie.

She also sent me some really nice sparkly styling stitch markers. I am totally trying to figure out how to make stitch marker jewllery I have tried 2 methods but not too happy with them, I will make it work! But really these are pretty and totally wearable I think. Maybe Stitch marker earrings..? And couple bags of imported Green tea. Sweet! Tres Cool.

Much Thanks to Chrissie!! I really loved the gifts you sent me!! I am sorry about the mess up in July!! I le suck!

Oh the scarf I want to crochet : the link is busted. Will edit when not crazy late for work.

For Michelle, Cuz She Whines! hee

2007-08-21T08:53:00.000-06:00

Baby's got a brand new knitting bag!!

Your Jealous! Admit it!!

The candleflame shawl, triangle thing. Basically knitting it until I have run out of yarn. I got this yarn online and the colours looked way different on screen then in the skein, but as I wound it I liked it better, but it's much to stiff for socks I think. It's spuerwash so I don't know how well blocking is going to work on it. I love the pattern from the front but....

I can't say I like the nipple-ly back. Oddly enough my boss likes the back better saying it looks like raspberries.

The very evil bellatrix. Cast on 3 times this is the sock that has the most progress. I am going to have to modify the pattern for much fewer stitches to have it fit my calves. I wanted to use my sock blockers but they weren't big enough. These fit like the old 80's slouchy socks...
My leg really isn't that lumpy :/

Josephine or Starsky. Apparently starsky. I am a little concered that it's not going to be as long as I'ed like but it's about 16" so far and as I am 5'2" (and in denial) mathmatically it should work out....cuz yeah math and me are good friends.. Back has about a dozen more rows I think.

Jellyfish Shrug. Well it lives up to it's name!!Trying to potograph this rather limp piece of knitting was a chore the colours are better represented in the pic I snagged of the skein. It's very thin across the back but I am thinking a seed stitch border in the Crimson and Clover then switching to the heavier worsted weight should give some extra width, plus I love the yarn!

Happy Now, Michelle? ;>

Ravelry: The Surgeon General's Warning

2007-08-20T09:00:00.000-06:00

Ravelry is contaminated people!! Beware! caution! Danger Will Robinson!! You sign up and get smacked down with most deadly strain of viral startitis the world has ever know. It's not a knitting website it's a drug resitant plauge. Want proof? I had about 3 things actively on the go. Nothing too scary. Since then it's grown. Balloned. Mushroomed.

Now I have always started and abandoned projects as I see fit. It's my hobby no one is holding a gun to my head. I have enough stress in my life that adding worry about finishing a project I am bored with seems more than a little silly. I have terms like current rotation. Sometimes when something just will not work out I like to frog and deny any attempt. I admit this, now, but be prepared for a full denial later.

Check out the progress bars (dude I have progress bars, next stop cuts, I will not be HTML's bitch much longer ok i probably will be but a chick can dream). These are just current rotation. The top layer of things on needles. The whole subsection of things on needles would need another page. I have forgotten most of them. (Except that Malbrigio hat. I really have to find my Boye set. It was a really cute hat, just needs much bigger needles. The MJ hat from Spiderman 2). Current Rotation is not even a complete list. There are presents. We will not discuss the presents as people read the blog. *SHHHHH* I can't even post on Ravely as persons are on Ravelry. (YB if you look at my queue I'll personally arrange for an arborial unconsenting fornication-don't think I won't! And there won't be time for lubricant. [I've been watching too many movies lately]) So to be in current rotation they need to be acknowledged, occasionally touched (sometimes this simply means moving it from the coffee table to the kitchen table to the desk) and sometimes actually knit. And I wonder why I almost never finish anything!?!

Since startng on Ravelry I have started everything that is in current rotaion. And i have about 47+ queue. Some of which I'll never make but at least I know I can find them again if only to think about making them. Dental bills this year are going to be stupid high and so it's the year of the knitted gift. many knitted gifts. I made a few already. Like a knithulu, which I already gave away. Knitted Christmas Gifts are tricky.

I'ed like to design a few basic and simple pattern socks and hats probably. I have Vouge Stitchonary 1 and 2 and 365 knit patterns a day but until the day I die (or suck it up and buy them for myself) I will kick my own ass for not buying Barbara Walker's Knitting Treasurys when I saw the whole 4 volume set for 160 bucks!

Keep an eye on the status bars for more Ravelry inspred startitis.

(to my SP11: I have no idea why I never got your emails. I have been checking my bulk/spam folder and most of it was about enlarging my p3nis or graas that grows anywhere :/ Next time you comment please leave the annonymous email and I can put your email in my address book and, I think, it should stop the problem. Dude I know that quote. I can't think of from where tho. *makes face* It's going to make me nuts (nuttier). I like all sorts of things my favourite thingss rarely have rhyme or reason. It's an Orange thing. There is always something that grabs my attention. Really like current rotaion in knitting, I have current rotation in interests. Right now on the top of the list are comic book heroes, zombies, my Nintendo wii, NFL football (go colts) and Harry Potter. In knitting it's gift ideas. I have one skein wonders and a bunch of random knitting books but little projects are a good thing right now with the whole knitted Christmas thing pending) I'm so-so on socks, my sock mojo left, I'm hoping to fill the void with latvian mitten mojo.)

You know one day I am going to have to do an audio post just because I type scary. Once you hear me talk it's ok but I must admit I do type hella scary.

Secret Pal 11 Questionaire

2007-08-13T12:43:00.000-06:00

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

Non-squeecky yarn. Squeeking yarn makes me shudder.
I really need some DK and worsted and Possibly bulky to add to the stash. Right now I have a lot of fingering weight.

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a rocken DPN holder from my monkey pal Leslie.
I have a vase that holds my straights and um. well the cirulars are either MIA or in projects at the moment.

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I am an adventurous intermediate (i think in order to be an expert you actually have to be good at knitting. I am averageish.

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

amazon.ca and www.thesweetsheep.com

5. What's your favorite scent?

apples, roses, cinnamon, tea

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

caramels!! but my teeth are so bad right now I shouldn't, but soo good

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I have tried crochet, cross stitch, beading, wire jewllery, floral arranging, scrapbooking and spinning (sort of) I realize am not even a little crafty

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

almost everything I have plays mp3s I like new age/techno opera best

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

I like yarns in bright colours. I prefer something not royal blue, red nor yellow. If it's to be actual clothing often I will make it out of a more sedate colour. Like a shrug in browns. Scarves gloves or other accessories are bright and wild.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I take care of my parents
I have 4 cats and 2 dogs

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

not ponchos but I may wear a capelet. ;/

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

right now I am knitting small little gifty things and HP themed items. Fingerless gloves, small bags, hats and a knittend Cuthulu doll

13. What are you knitting right now?

fishnet stockings
stuffed dragon
little pyramid bags
owls
Jellyfish from Magknits
Coachella from Knitty
oh and Stasky from Knitty

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

UN HUH!

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

I like straights but I love my glass circs so I think I just like glass best. Metla Needles are good as I usually warp my wooden ones.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

yes I just got this awesome Orange swift for my birthday!!

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

lets just say I have many UFO's and I don't care. I knit for fun and if the project isn't fun I usually won't keep going.

18. What is your favorite holiday?

Halloween and Christmas (I love Christmas Music!!)

19. Is there anything that you collect?

Stuffed Polar Bears

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I really want Barbara Wlaker's knitting treasuries!
I buy Knit.1, Interweave, Vouge, Simply Knitting and anything else I come across that i like. Not a fan of Creative Knitting though.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I'ed like to be better at fair isle and intarsia

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

I am tho I am on a bit of a sock break at the moment.
My feet are 9" long and 9" instep....

23. When is your birthday?

Aug 10

24. Are you on Ravelry? If so, what's your ID?

Jinxsa
I moderate World War Z (a zombie group) and Yarn In Tights (for comic book fans)

Sock Kit 2 Swap

2007-08-01T08:37:00.000-06:00

KNITTING:

How would you rate yourself as a knitter on a scale from 1 (what's knitting?) to 10 (I knit lace in my sleep.)? 7 An adventurous Knitter who can't do intarsia well nor happily

What techniques are you comfortable with? (cables, lace, entrelac, intarsia, fair isle...)What techniques are you itching to learn? everything but intasrisa and fair ilse, i can do them but again, neither well nor happily

What techniques are scarier than grasshoppers monsters in the closet? it's knitting, whats there to be scared about?

KNITTING SOCKS:How many socks have you knit? Guesstimation is okey dokey! 10ish

Do you live and breathe socks, or is this your first time knitting them? Interpolation is encouraged. I like socks but sometimes you need a sweater...or dragon..or something, anything, else

How do you do it: Magic loop, DPNs, two circulars? Bamboo, metal, pencils? 2 circs is my new fave but dpns were my first ;> Magic loop feels like wrestling an octopus

Ever tried any other method? Want to? Willing to try anything...which says a lot about me actually

YARN:What yarn do you currently have in stock? Sweet Sheep, STR, Koigu, Yarntini, Seacoast, C*eye*ber Fiber, Zen Yarn Garden, Louet, Cherry Tree Hill, Kroy, and a few misc around somewhere.

Yarns that you love? Hate? I like my yarn to be like me, tightly wound ;> I like my fingering yarn closer to sport than fingering,

Solid, self striping, self patterning, variegated, hand dyed. Discuss. I prefer verigated but it's always depending on the pattern. Jaywalkers for example look amazing with self striping. Has anyone found something that looks good with jaquardi?

Colours you love?Colours you hate? Bright colours with heavy emphasis on orange, teal, lime and purples. I am not a fan of primary colours.

Are you a wool knitter, or does cotton get you going? (Or, you know, other fibers...) Wool and other fibers, cotton is ok to but a blend is more comfirtable to work with.

Does 100g do you, or do you have a love of tall socks/big feet? I don't have big feet but I heart a long sock.

Do you make your own yarn? Have you ever wanted to try to? I have to get onto the whole drop spindle thing I have a kit it's just sitting down and learning it. I want a spinning wheel but it's not a good investment right now as I wouldn't get enough time to use it

Do you want to use handmade yarn? You know that stuff not spun by a machine... I prefer superwash for socks because I am terrified they will felt!

EXTRAS:Describe yourself in 5 words or less. Funky, Strange, Enthusiastic, Refreshing and Blunt

Have you ever actually used a stitch marker? Periodically, sometimes even in my knitting, there is always a use for a good stitch marker!

You love chocolate, right? I love caramel and toffee best but chocolate rocks too.

Are you allergic to anything I might think about sending to you? (We at Sock Kit Swap 2 do not encourage sending prescription medication to your pals.) Bees ( I understand this means I can't use anything with paba in it skin creams and the like), fish, most detergents and soaps like Ivory(wool wash seems to be ok)

Any patterns you've been dying to try? I bought cookie a.'s patterns but haven't given them a try yet.

Any other random information you think your pal may find useful? My blog is full of them. Right now only that I am entirely HTML impared.

Ravelry: The Ultimate Time suck, Kinda

2007-07-25T00:12:00.000-06:00

Ravelry could be the best knitterly thing that happened to me or the no so much good thing that happened to me. I love it but I am completely experiencing eyes bigger than stomach situations. I see so many things that I want to add to my queue but I am trying to restrain myself. It's really REALLY hard though. I have to admit thus far my favourite part has been reading the forums. There are groups for darned near everything!

I am spending much of my online time there (at least I have it minimized to the background almost all the time). I have found many little Christmas presents that I want to make for RL friends and as it's July I wonder how crazy I am to be planning for Christmas already...mind you if I want to get anything DONE for Christmas it wouldn't be a bad idea.

Currently I am working on Bellatrix socks, Errol (all Harry Potter, all the time 'round here), and Jellyfish shrug. Well actually I still need to wind the yarn for the shrug. Which I hate doing. And YB is doing penence or remodling his bathroom or some such crap and thus is being wholly selfish in neglecting his winding duties. Bast-tard-es!

next week I will be totally organizing stash and posting it ! Any reason to organize the stash and play with yarn.
Ravelry Name: Jinxsa

Big post- I owe ya'll!

2007-07-18T10:21:00.000-06:00

I got my last package from my SP my Spoiler is Valerie from http://littlepieceofthenet.blogspot.com/. It took me a while to figure out her blog as she left clues and not a url. I won't discuss why I didn't think of looking at the participants list for a , uh, FEW days. I got some really amazing swag, including 2!! handknits! A Calorimetry (Am I the only one calling it Calamity?) and a really lovely slip stitch scarf, made out of non-itchy ribbon yarn, who knew there was some? It's so funny because I almost bought that book the day before the package came. I desperately wanted it. Especially how nothing is working for me right now.

Valerie has been a really great pal and I am looking forward to keeping up with her! A knitter/zombie flick fan is just to damned delicious (so to speak). I haven't forgoten she won my blog prize! I can pick something out she'll like now!

Currently my knitting mojo has been sorely lacking. Everything I have knit (including for other people-especially for other people, oi!!) I want to enter a handknit into the local fair-type thing we have going on here. The deadline is Sunday. I tried to knit a DK shawl, it was going quickly but looked like boiled ass made out of string, not yarn but like string. Blech. So I was on the knitting! LJ and saw a link to this http://simpleknits.blogspot.com/search?q=butterfly+shawl I am totally making this now. I am using the cone of yarn I picked up in my last major stash surge. The colours are WAY off, it's much more of a deep dark mysterious plum. (my camera hates my new digs.) I started it yesterday at 4ish, So I have hopes I may finish it before the deadline, hey it's a shawl is it not going to fit? Please. Also check the needles...that's right-glass. I bought these for status, but holy poodle poop do I totally completely heart them. The join looks horrible, I looked at it and thought ...yeah ...no. But it's amazing. I bought them at the Sweet Sheep. http://www.thesweetsheep.com/xcart/home.php?cat=76. There aren't a lot left. I'm very sad.

I fell down the sKNITces rabbit hole. I couldn't help it. They look yummy (AGAIN WITH THE CAMERA!) The top row is one skein each of Showgirls, plum pudding, clarisse. Under it my Project spectrum yarn for the month, in Golden Ticket (why not Golden Snitch?, not a HP fan, Michelle? hee)

And while I am not a big red fan....I got me some Zombie!! I'm so geeky.

In my personal life I am doing ok, paying off a rather large unexpected bill. Am getting frustrated about it. Ces't la vie, I guess ;/. I had a follow up to my dr.s physical and was asked how I managed to get there the day of my annual as I had practically NO B12 at all. My colesterol and iron and everything else was very very good but no B12 this is what she suspected was casuing my backouts. I have been trying to remember to take my B12 everyday but I am not very good at remembering to take pills, (YB-you can finish that sentence can't you?-dont need to post it though). The bum jab she gave me (did you know they really do jab you in the bum?, I always thought it was a tv/movie thing) has started to wear off and I find if I don't keep up with the pills, I get black spots in front of my eyes-bah. The new job front didn't pan out they couldn't afford me and/or I couldn't afford them. Work is pretty much back to normal so it's not great but at least it's what I am used to.

I moved my PC and some things into a spare room before the worst of the heat kicked up. I built a new computer hutch (ok I IKEA'd it up) and this is the view from my seat. Cat Butt. Usually there is significantly more tail across my screen. Sometimes Sam-Sam gets up there which is much better as he has no tail. (I am not mean he's a Manx, he's born that way). Eventually I am going to finish cleaning this room out and bringing all my yarn in here and/or my books. I am desperately hoping for a little glider rocking chair to show up in my price range. Or a swift. Hee.

My 30th b-day is in a few weeks. It's interesting. I still get people asking me what school I go to. I am hoping to take a quick trip out of town with Yarn Boy. We'll see what we end up doing. (Oh imax Harry Potter with 3D ending??) I have watched almost 4 hours of Dark Shadows this am, it's wonderful to have as backround when knitting, or writing, or anything. I am waiting for a good bootleg of Order of the Pheonix to come out, just to make screen caps out of it. I want to make Hermione's sweater. And Ginny's and Luna's thought it was crochet (I feel so betrayed by that, or offended). I wish there had been some handknits in Transformers!! ;>

Oh and I, um, found a link at Valerie's http://www.ravelry.com/antsy . You can find out where you are at in the queue over at Ravelry. I was so depressed as I read like 6 posts about how amazing it was this morning, Valerie had 665 people ahead of her. I didn't want to know how many were ahead of me. Well, actually I did.

You signed up on May 29, 2007
You are #5826 on the list.
8 people are ahead of you in line.
12244 people are behind you in line.
32% of the list has been invited so far

Can I call in sick to work today?

Socks! I have socks!

2007-07-05T07:57:00.001-06:00

I recieved 2 pairs of socks in the mail this past week...(and a half) and I'm just getting around to blogging them. I could point out that I had made an executive decision to do all the laundry that I had left for over since a week before my second to last post, but there is a small load of jeans in the hamper mocking me. Also I am expanding my space in the house. I have covertly taken over dad's old office upstairs. Mom knows dad doesn't. As dad can't get up the stairs I feel my secret is safe. Enter new computer desk (that tried to kill me a few times during assmebly). Yarn will move in there eventually and maybe a tv. There are 2 recliners in here one for me one for laundry and cats. Dispite that we own more hampers per capita (even figuring in the dogs and cats) then anyone else I know we seem to always have a shortage. I can't explain it. It's a mystery for the ages. On to the way cool sockage.

First Up is my Griffandor Harry Potter sock from my pal MJ!! (yeay MJ). I happy to report the socks are cool and comfy. Tres Rocking! (http://mjmknitting.blogspot.com/2007/07/jinxsas-socks.html) They came with many treats for my menagery like chocodrops for the dogs, Greenies for the cats and um...catnip. Canip in packages is aparently bad. We don't use catmip at the house so we didn't know this. I came in the house with the package after another hideous long Sunday to find my package in the mailbox. (I get packages on a sunday...weird). I go down stairs to say goodnight to dad and no more than 5 minutes later the package is opened and things are all over the kitchen. Even a week later (or a bit more-dudes I am sooo hideously behind on everything) package items are getting lost/stolen. Not pictured is the treats for the animals and a foot bath balm and tea tree oil for me and my poor abused feet. The socks are hairy because OHBZ took my feet for a ride when I wore them yesterday. I'ed have taken a picture but he's 30 pounds and there was no way I could manage stairs. Oh and that little piece of paper. Opening day tickets for Order of the Pheonix. HEE.

The second package is from Leslie who is my Monkey Sock Swap Pal. Yeay. The yarn she Used for the sock is stuff she handdyed herself (it's so soft and funky). Apparently she was going to use the other funy stuff in the back there but it wasn't working out. Monkey socks don't lend themseves well to self striping OR ...i want to say Jaquardi.. but I am not sure that's the term I am looking for. And there is 4 monkey Items by Bobby Jack. Glitter Tattoos, puffy Stickers a necklance and a keychain. But next to best (I like the socks best from the package tyvm) is the dpn case that matches the socks. I had a case like this once for long straights but everything fell out but this one folds then wraps and dudes, she sewed it up herself!! Am I the only one who after sewing for 3 months only produced 1 purse and one remotely wearable skirt? But seriously the case it really cool!! Yeay! You can find Leslie at www.ladybugknits.blogspot.com and you should tell her how cool she is.

I can't express how much I love both these pairs of socks and how much I feel my own knitting sucks by comparison .... but the thought matters most of all, so thanks for thinking of me.

Do you have this in white?

2007-07-05T07:44:00.000-06:00

Well I really outsmarted myself this time.

I work in women's clothing and I had a lady come in asking me if we had any shirts like the one in the window (green and white striped about 1.5 inches thick) Now of course I think she is refering to the solid tank top as she only mentioned one colour and the stripes are on the table in the doorway) and I start off by showing her tank tops. She gets mad at me for not being able to read her mind and she said "The striped one!" Ok I can adjust, never say I'm not flexable. So in attempt to figure out what the poodle-poop she wants I ask white with what colour? She pauses and furrows her brow then says loudly (like I'm speaking a foreign language and hearing impared) "White-with-white-stripes" Thinking this woman is a few apples short of a bushel...maybe more then just a few...and taking note of the vein throbbing in my head I take a solid white shirt off the rack to show her. I'm fully thinking I went to far and I'm going to get yelled at (and rightfully so) when the customer in question looked all sad and said "Oh, don't you have any with the stripes going the other way?"

You ever see 2 sales associates get jammed in the backroom dooor trying to get to the bathroom before they wet their pants?

Why Yes This Is A Cop Out

2007-06-21T15:36:00.000-06:00

Sadly I have a headache the size of Texas, a tooth ache the size of Orogon and the attention span of a gnat today. I haven't posted in forever due to job upheval which when it stops heaving I will fill you all in. I am still writing my Zombie Arrmageddon Post that was for Internation Zombie Blog Day on the 13...**sigh** Put all that together and couple that with my parents' citronella accident (I am majorly allergic so you can picture how happy I am) You get a cop out post of Pictures from the Toronto Zoo during my trip.

I have Not Dropped Off the Face of the Earth, Maybe If I Asked Nice Tho

2007-06-11T09:56:00.000-06:00

Hello All, It's been a very long weekend here, well for me. 9-9 Saturday and 9-fraking midnight Sunday. I did not knit in public. In fact I did not knit at all. Oh I had plans but sadly so did head office. I do not like my headoffice today. As 27 hours on my feet at work have made me feel much shorter than I am, at 5'2" I can't afford to lose much! I wonder if I can sue for height minimization? Does Workman's comp cover shortning? Today I shall knit exclusively on my Harry Potter Sock as I am so far behind MJ it's scary. I will also do laundry as I have ziltch to wear to work tomorrow. I may post knitting content today or not. I want to but the effort of finding something not secret may do me in. Much top secret knitting. Need Ultraviolet clearance. (I love Babylon 5-luckily so does my dad so there has been much b5 watching here lately)

Why Self Imposed Deadlines Suck.

2007-06-01T22:49:00.000-06:00

Dudes. I had a day off, a whole day off. I got the plague. I know no one with a cold right now. Not one person. I can't recall seeing anyone or serving a customer with a cold since I came back from vaca. So why in the name of all that is stringy do I feel like I am swimming underwater with my snorkle pointing the wrong way? In what way is this at all fair? **mumbles**

I did the draw today sort of. I wasn't really a draw it was more me going pick a number between 1 and 13 to my dad. Who promptly answered 20, 16 and 2347. *Sigh* (this is what comes when you encourage him, Yarn Boy). I then went to my mother, who is adorable but hearing impared and not one to pay to much attention. I asked her to pick a number between 1 and 13 she told me we have no tomato soup and would I like Cream of Mushroom.....for the record I never want Cream of Mushroom, except in a casserole, and not at all in this case. Clearly finding an impartial judge was going to be difficult. So I consulted the manifest of living bodies in the house, meaning, in this case, I triped over a cat. Divine inspiration! I grabed a d20 cuz I am queen of the geek girls rolled it on the floor by the stairs and let the cat knock it off the stairs. 20. Clearly the cat had been talking to my father. Still eventually there would be something between 1 and 13.....eventually was 7(!) times more, let me tell you if any of you had been #18 I'ed owe you my whole stash. But eventually #6 bounced aross the carpet. So yeay Blacklace (My secret pal 10). I'll have a prize ready for you the minute I can breathe through at least one nostril and , you know, find out who you are ;> either/or.

No doubt you are wondering which one got the most votes 9-4 for starsky on the blogger side of things. 2-7 for Josephine on the co-worker and so forth side of things. I really should have seen that one comming, huh?

7 Random Things About Me

2007-05-25T23:33:00.000-06:00

I got tagged by MJ to do the 7 random things MEME. I'm not tagging anyone else because either they have done it , they don't want to do it or they don't have a blog.

1. I write the way I talk. I got a rather nasty comment about how I write on the blog. A lot of ..., comma's, quotation marks, to say nothing of perenthesis. If you know me, I think it would make a lot more sense. It's like hearing the cadence of speech but in print (I usually have a lot of little asides when I speak, I like to get off topic (sometimes off the off topic in the same sentence) but I do realize that multiple perenthesis make it difficult for the reader (crap)). Perhaps one day I'll do a blogcast and read my entryaloud. I'ed be more inclined if it weren't for....

2. I sound like a chuipmunk in heat. My voice is fairly high pitched and I tend to get over excited and speak much to quickly. When dealing with customers I have a whole other voice, when dealing with my parents I have yet another (well it's much louder anyways). The chipmunk thing is much worse on the phone, unless I am trying to do something unpleasent (hello internet tech support) then I sound like Angelina Jolie or something.

3. I forget my own phobias. I like to think i can go to a haunted house, for example but I always, ALWAYS, chicken out. I hate snakes and lizards but I go to the zoo and walk past them thinking "Ok, I can deal with this ther is glass between us" then I am shoving children and old people out of my way to get past the snakes. If I see a snake on tv or in a movie I can't have my feet touch the floor, they end up on the seat with me (You can imagine the leg cramps I got when seeing Anaconda-see I always forget my phobias)

4. Everyone around me misinterprets my phobias, well, one of them. I don't like rabbits. I think they are cute and cuddly and sweet lookin. But they have big teeth and claws and can really hurt you if they have half a mind to do so. So I am not afraid of bunnies per se but I have no desire to ever hold one, as it has bigger teeth than brains (also why I stopped going to the bars)

5. I hate being called the c-word. No not that one (tho I wouldn't like to be called THAT ONE either) I mean cute. It's not so bad now but a few years ago everyone called me cute. I was a Hello Kitty in a Jessica Rabbit world. Skirts that ended 5 inchs above the knee with pitch boots were equally as cute as an oversized sweatshirt picturing frolicing kittens. There was a limit and the skirt boot combo was it.

6. My verbage is questionable. I like to make up words and I deliberately mix metaphors. For example, I like to say "thats a different ball of fish" a mix of "a whole new ball of wax" and "a new barrel of fish". I love the word pointy (which is important and/or relevant) and unpointy (unimportant and/or irrelevant) I use the words so much that I forget what words I am trying to replace. Lately I have enojyed saying unpossible it certainly gets noticed. It makes customers pay more attention when you throw odd little languagy bits at them.

7. I love closed captions. I love them so much! My mother has about 15% of her hearing left and she hates them, my father has lost about 20% of his and he hates them (although in all due fairness his last stroke efected him so he has a hard time reading the leftmost part of the line). I have most of my hearing (stupid walkmans/ipods) and I love them. It's probably because I watch so much BBC tv. Accents and lingo can really screw me up somedays.

Dreaming Big

2007-05-25T15:11:00.000-06:00

I ...um...well....have bought a bit more yarn. And by a bit i mean about 3 large boxes worth. You saw in the last falsh the stash most of the first of 3 boxes, well the other 2 came in and here is the rest complete with thier "Dream Big" pictures. (FYI the contest will keep going until Tueday of next week as that is my next day off, as good a reason as any I suppose). I ended up at Micheals and picked up a lined hamper style basket to help hold my new yarn. I have shelves set up but I need to reorganize them. I plan on taking 3 days off in a few weeks are really just moving furniture and so forth to make more room and to get the computer out of my room before it gets to hot out.

Above is random stash I bought. Some of it is for Secret Swaps but mostly for me. (listed because I like to know so I figure someone else may as well)

2 Louet Euroflax Linen in Violet
Sweet Socks in Lola (that's the yellow, blue and purple verigated yarn)
3 Debbie Bliss Cotton Angora In Teal
2 Hip Knits Silk in Swet Sheep colourway (hot pink)
150g Handmaiden Sea Silk Lace in Dragonfly
Fleece Artist Sea Wool sock Yarn inPinata
2 balls of Alpaca Silk in hot pink

The Louet Gems is for 3 Pairs of Harry Potter Socks. I have started the ones that need to be mailed (Hi MJ!) and I really really hope the other 2 pairs dont' take too long, it's the first time I have made men's socks and that means they are pretty big right? Drat.

This is Shelridge Farms this and the items above are what I ordered from www.TheSweetSheep.com (Hi Michelle!). You know the place I am forever talking about? Yeah there. She has a ton of new things in already and I want to tell you about them but I am broke and you'll get there before I do so my lips are sealed. Go look and find your own stuff. In the right of the picture is 4 skeins of Shelridge Farms Worsted in "Pink Lemonade" which I either bought for Tempting or the Cable Bandeau from Interweave Knits. I can't remember which. So it probably means I'll cast on either one depending on the weather that day. Warm it'll be the bandeu, cool temperatures would lead to Tempting. To the left is Shelridge Farms DK in "Candy Floss" and "Raspberry", the Candy Floss is from an attempt to make the Dollar and a Half Cardi (which with lace and reverse stockingette makes the wearer look like the staypuff marshmellow man UNLESS the knitter is willing to change the needle size twice per lace and stockigette repeat. I wasn't.) Instead I am thinnking of trying to make this 9also it proves to Interweave I forgive it for the Michlen Man sweater so they wont produce another issue like the current Summer one in revenge...is it just me or is only ok, not great?)

I'm not sure I like the pattern on the sides of the sleeves so they may be plain St.st. The back is kinda freaky too, but interesting and it looks really complex, whgich is better than cool-it's kewl.

This was my fisrt order from knitpicks. The yarn is good for the price and I haven't tried knitting anything with it. As you can see I desided to knit the "Equinox Yoke Pullover" from fall Interweave '06. I saw one in person at the Frolic and it was soo nice. Plus I have bohus envy. As you can see I opted not to do brown. I don't know why. I'll wear this all the time in fall winter where all my bottoms are in the earthtone family it seems but I like bright colour so the pale grey sweater with brightly coloured yoke is very yeay. I am not sure I did the oatmeal colour at the bottom right or the pale violet next to the bag of grey. I have time before I cast on so I'll play about a bit, maybe I should draw a chart with crayons to see the colours I like together (seriously). I went from "Akk! No colourwork allowed!!" to "Oh that looks nice and hard" in the oversized scary sweater that swallowed my house. That was just 2 colours this is ..more. I'ed count but I'M AFRAID.

Also included is the yarn for Josephine or Starsky. This stuff is huge! I know I have been manily working with fingering yarns lately but OMG bulky yearns look huge! I don't know if I can knit something that is like 2 sts. per inch. It'ed fell almost vulgar! Like I was cheating somehow. I can just imagine doing a half dozen rows and having 8" of progress to show. I'ed be giddy!

I also bought 3 circular needles, 2 sets of dpns and a magnetic chart keeper. The needles are amazing and so cheap I think I am going to end up owning a lot of them. Yeay! I like them a bit better than addi because when I knit my stitches are always close to the needle tips so with addis there is a lot of sliding off issues, these not so much, which kicks so much ass. The chart keeper...it's ok. The magnets are not very magnetic and I'ed put a pouch on the back of the keeper to hold notions or other patterns that aren't in current use. I am going to see if I can get some better magnets and If i can put a pouch on the back, it was ok for the price but it's not on my list to buy more.

It was a magnificent spree and I love my new stash and gear. I have a lot of projects I can make, but the really nice thing about Dream Big is I don't have to follow through on specific I deas. That's the Dream part. I may find something else I want to make and change my mind, and I am ok with that.

NOTE:I have been tagged for 7 random things MEME that everyone in the knitblog world has done (I think) but that will have to wait until next time as the fiber was way, way, way more exciting. Sorry MJ you'll just have to wait. (Also you should know me well enough by now to realize everything about me is random) ~D.

My First Blog Contest

2007-05-21T21:32:00.000-06:00

My first blog contest. I am sitting here working on my "Dream Big" file, there is a lot of projects in there. I did a huge bunch of yarn ordering this past week and I bought enough cream bulky yarn for a sweater coat. The problem is I don't know which to knit. So I'm going to have a little contest. It'll run until next week and all you have to do is vote which one I should cast on. I'ed also appreciate if you gave a reason as to why you think I should make one over the other but it isn't necessary. I have a lot of hush hush secret pals out there and they can leave comments annonymously and the prize in question can get sent out after the big reveal. Iwon't announce what the prize is yet because not everyone who reads this is a knitter, most I think are, not to mention when someone who owns her own store reads your blog you need to be inventive with prizes ;> I think I'll give 2 away depending on how many entries-one drawn randomly and 1 based on how thoughtful the answer was (even if it's not endorsing the one that makes the final cut).

Here it is the Battle of the Titans

Starsky

Josephine

Current pros and cons

I love the banana leaf panels on Starsky they are the sexy but the cables on Josephine stand out more, and this may come as a shock, I like to stand out in a crowd. Both I'ed have to put in buttonholes but Josephine isn't as open in front, a plus as I always wear tank tops but it's fairly bulky looking. I am not into math so altering either pattern is, while not out of the question, probably going to limit the odds of this project ever getting completed. (I'm being honest here-I am pretty sketchy on knitting math). I like both of these for different reasons but I'll let you pick which one I do. (Well I'll post this at work so my non blogging co-workers get to vote too-if they have to look at it in the backroom for 3 months they should get a say-tho they won't be in the contest.)

Hopefully this idea doesn't fall flat.

Both patterns are available to paruse at knitty.com

http://www.knitty.com/ISSUEwinter05/PATTstarsky.html

http://knitty.com/ISSUEfall05/PATTjosephine.html

Flash The Stash

2007-05-20T19:25:00.000-06:00

Well the top layer of the stash, after you get past the top layer there's a lot of yarn that I'ed rather forget, you know back from the days you thought it didn't get better than Bernat Satin. Those young, innocent, carefree days before I had actually held silk, angora and cashmere. Before I heard of "Limited Edition" colourways. I have very faint memories of the days before I realized they call it yarn because the name heroin was already taken, the stash remembers tho. The stash has a crystal clear memory of my finding fuzzy acrylic yarn with multi-contrasting-coloured shlubs in it. (OMG $2 a ball, I must have the whole bin!) My stash remembers when I hadn't even thought of ordering yarn online and thus was reduced to Micheals, Walmart and Zellers. My stash remembers when I went throught that bamboo needle frolic at the dollar store-hint when you go in everydayon your lunch because you have to replace one you broke it's no longer cheaper to buy needles at the dollar store. My stash has so much Red Heart and random generic acrylic that it asks fashion advice from guys in bellbottomed flood-pant powder blue tux's.

The top layer of stash is pretty shallow, in more ways than one. It's lured in by the words silk and cashmere. It likes bright colours but only works the neon in offbeat and "kitch" ways. It's grown-up stash. It reads Vouge. It's luxurious. It screams out to be touched. It appreciates quality. It buys brand names. It ... has a sock fetish. Look there's a cone! The stash is learning to commit!

And for those of you who noticed the Bernat Camaflage in pink..remember above all it's MY stash, so it has to have a sense of humour.

EDIT:I have been advised to mention that this is not all of the top layer of stash. It is in fact much bigger however the bedroom I take pictures in (to forever be known as theonly room in the house with any kinda of natural light) isn't mine and If I covered her bed with the entirely of the top layer, well, I'ed have died, probably painfully and it doesn't seem worth it somehow.

Drumroll Please..

2007-05-18T09:10:00.000-06:00

Caution Rambling % is high in this entry. Sanity is at risk.

Public Sevice announcement. Please people sending me parcels, can you ship them off later in the day? I don't need people showing up at 7 :15 to deliver packages I am neither dressed nor even remotely "with it". (squinting while repeating the word "what?" 16 times when the postman has yet to say anything makes him a bit...edgy) No postal person deserves that sort of treatment. Twix look like breakfast food at this time of what is laughingly descripted as day. (You want day come talk to me when the AM hours are double digits.)
Thanks, Management ;>

I have been waiting on two packages. One from my Secret Pal 10 and one from my Knitter's Treat Exchange. Sure enough they both arrived the same day, isn't that always the way?? Still I have a lovely box (Huge) from Michelle @the SweetSheep (yeay new yarn, most of which I am not giving away-probably, I took an abandoned SP under my wing, She followed me home, I sware, can I keep her?) So other than the No Sheep Swap and the Monkey Swap and the Not So Secret Harry Potter Socks I'm um... swap free, I can't type that with a straight face, NEVER A GOOD SIGN. Still as long as I can tell mom that it's for all my pen pals, she says little about the string.

What?, Oh you want pictures? OK anything to keep you ravening hoards at bay ! ;) The first up is from my Secret Pal...I can't link to her yet...soon...not yet...but soon....(way to many cartoons this week, I need to cut back before "I tink i tee a puddytat")

When I saw the yarn I thought it said Brillo (you know those S.O.S pads?) I thought "That can't be good,' But it IS. it's a cotton viscose blend, it's soft and stretchy. It'll be socks, I'm into the whole socks thing now. I think it'ed make a nice pair of monkeys or maybe a cabled sock. I haven't done cables in a while. There is a copy of Vouge Knitting on the Go-Weekend Knits Which is perfect for my microscopic attention span (2 tanks in there have my vote) and the Everything Book of Knitting- I love Everything books, I have the one on Philosophy and a few others and they have a tounge in cheek humour that appeals to me. Plus cute cartoons! And 2 sets of note cards, in so pretty colours!

My treater was Dana from www.fullskein.blogspot.com . I liked this exchange in someways, other ways not so much. Quote from Exchange rules - Treats you MUST send: 1. Enough yarn for a one skein/small project 2. Magazine 3. Pampering treat - e.g. Hand cream, bath fizzer etc 4. Delicious treat - e.g. chocolate/candy/tea/coffee 5. Your blog address, so your pal can say hello (which in typical Jinxsa style I forgot). I had a hard time with the magazine, who knows who has what? They are so easy to pick up, sitting right there at the checkout, waiting for you. Be nice if they put personal ads there, you could get bread, cheese, soup and a boyfriend all in the 8 items or less lane. Better than chocolate and tabloids-though apparently that OK! with Mel B and Eddie Murphy's baby was the best seller since they started I saw that sucker everywhere in town, geez what an ass.)

Wait where was I? ;/ Oh yeah my Treat Pal!! (Sorry) She sent me some awesome orange trekking I almost bought in Lettuce Knit while visiting Toronto. I drew the line at buying one extra suitcase for yarn. I would have made fun of me for 2 extra suitcases. So it's going to be a really nice...scarf..ha you thought I was going to say socks, I know you were don't lie! A cute bright scarf that will work with all the fall browns! There is a lovely little case that the sweet smelling lotion did NOT want to come out of. I got sheepy notecards (I need to correspond more) and Knitting (published in England) and the new knitscene with the konobi jacket *kewl*. She sent me breast cancer stitch markers in honour of my mom, who is doing great with her new curly hair (that is a mini 'fro but she's still damn cute). There was twix. I know what I am having for supper (shuddup yarn boy your just jealous because I got chocolate through the mail and you didn't) and Nips caramel hard candy!

My downstream pal for the Knitter's treat exchange was Kaki who can be found at http://kakisknittingbasket.blogspot.com . If you want to see the package I sent her it's at http://kakisknittingbasket.blogspot.com/2007/05/love-thursday.html. So 2 swaps down, a few more to go! This is so cool! I love the internet, sometimes, usually, sorta when it usues it's powers for yarn not evil.

Big Huge EDIT~I can't believe I forgot the most important part~ Thank You Dana and Secret Pal for taking the time and effort to get to know me and put my packages together. To not have said that before was, at best, unforgivable and, at worst, rude. (Why no I don't have that backwards I'm Canadian) I'm so sorry and am willing to grovel appropriately! Thank You very much.

2007-05-10T18:09:00.000-06:00

I was re-reading all that MEME again and I am stunned by my polar views on things. I really love and hate things. Example. I love good thick cables, I like thin cables I don't even remotely tolerate hollow cables. You know cables with lace in them. (bleh) It may look ok on but it's kinda just ... very ... well gross is my first inclination to say. Really I like my cables rounded and lace middles tend to go more elongated.

I have a deep and possibly irrational hatred for doing i-cord. I am sure it has it's place in the kitting world. Actually I know it does, far away from me. I don't mind the look of it and so on, it's useful, but I'ed rather have my bucknaked butt dragged across flaming hot coals then sit in a bucket of lemon juice than actually sit down and knit i-cord. I mean it's not something i can even get into a "zen-like" state. I need to look down. And I always get a sore fingertip. Ok well always applies to the 3 times I actually knit i-cord.

I am in many ways a knitting opportunist. I'll try anything twice. If you don't like it the first time it doesn't prove anything. If you swell up and can no longer breath then your allergic to it and it's probably best to only do it once. Just sayin. I love and adore complicated patterns, I can bobble and it's kinda neat (if only i could stop thinking of them as little fiber nipples-especially when I have to pinch them into a more round state...)

This next few months is all about socks. I am making Monkey socks for a swap, I am making (what I hope to be) an entre-lac hogwarts sock for my friend Ehm-Jay, in a not so secret swap, and I'ed like to make 2 pairs of men's hogwart's socks for my father and YB. To break up the monotany of socks I will mix in Anna which is.....another sock damnit. Something is wrong, I like socks, I like Harry Potter and I like my freinds ( and my dad ) but I have the attention span of a of a squirrel on expresso. Obviously I need a side project. I just don't know what. It's going to have to be something challenging (because men's socks are round and round and round and yawn... ) but it's also going to have to be boring so I don't knit it all the time. I love a challange, I love to knit but sometimes I hate how I have to trick myself into actually knitting everything on my list. And by sometimes I mean everytime I think about it.

Knitting MEME

2007-05-10T08:21:00.000-06:00

Mark with bold the things you have ever knit, with italics the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest.

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl - not finished yet
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Knitting with camel yarn
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting (knitting items on, or to be left on the street)
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting (as opposed to continental)
Knitting to make money
Button holes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colours
Knitting items for a wedding
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on two circulars
Olympic knitting
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener BO
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegating yarn
Stuffed toys
Baby items
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

Actual proper post coming later today -with possible knitting content to!

Meet My inner Deamon

2007-05-04T11:21:00.000-06:00

In 12 days my Deamon will be permident. I don't know if it is me tho. Take the test see!

Monkey Sock Swap

2007-05-02T23:13:00.000-06:00

Sorry, Just got back from vacation. Jet lag has stolen my brain.

The Basics:

How long have you been knitting? 2 years this August. I saw a book in a store and asked for it for my birthday. It was 8 months before I figured out my knit stitches were actually all ktbl's.

Do you consider yourself a beginning sock knitter, an intermediate, or have you been doing this so long you could probably knit a pair in your sleep? I'm an intermediate to moderately advanced knitter who doesn't have all that much experience with socks yet. I just learned to kitchner withiout crying this month. ;>

The measurements:
Shoe Size: 8
Foot circumference: 8.5 inches
Foot length: 9 inches but if you make the socks half an inch smaller in length they fit a bit better

Yarn Preferences:
Wild bright colours. My favourite combinations are fushia, teal, orange and purple. the wilder the better.

Do you prefer solids or variegated? Vareigated I'm not really into stripes with monkey socks, verigated and semi-solids seem to look best.

Do you prefer wool, cotton or acrylic yarn? Wool and wool blends.

What colors would you never wear? striped primaires, le very grande ew

Knitting Gadgets
Plastic, metal, bamboo or wood? I just learned how to do sock on 2 circs but I can't find my 2mm addis :( So I am using my brand new Pony plastic DPNS. I like that the stitches don't slide off and they are a pretty good length.

Are there any knitting accessories you don't have in your collection but would like? I need something to hold my DPNS

Would you be willing to have an international Monkey Pal or do you prefer one in the US? I at this point I know I am sending International.

Do you have any allergies? Only food ones.

Movie MEME

2007-04-12T07:10:00.000-06:00

It’s been alleged that if you’ve seen over 85 movies you have no life. Mark the ones you’ve seen. There are 240 films on this list. Copy this list, go to your own blog, paste it in and put x’s by the ones that you have seen. Add them up, figure out whether you’ve got a life or not, and post it.

Add movies of your own to the bottom of the list once completed.
(The ones in italic are ones I own but have never seen, either because no one wants to watch it with me, and I never get the tv to myself anymore, or I bought it for someone else to watch)

The total is bumped to 245 with my 5 on the bottom.

(X) Rocky Horror Picture Show
(X) Grease
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean
(X) Pirates of the Caribbean 2: Dead Man’s Chest
( ) Boondock Saints
Total so far:4

( ) Fight Club
( ) Starsky and Hutch
(X) Neverending Story
(X) Blazing Saddles
(X ) Airplane
Total so far: 7

(X) The Princess Bride
( ) AnchorMan
( ) Napoleon Dynamite
(X) Labyrinth
(X) Saw
Total so far: 10

( ) Saw II
(X) White Noise
(X) White Oleander
(X) Anger Management
(X) 50 First Dates
Total so far: 14

(X) The Princess Diaries
(X) The Princess Diaries 2: Royal Engagement
(X) Scream
(X) Scream 2
(X) Scream 3
Total so far: 19

(X) Scary Movie
(X) Scary Movie 2
( ) Scary Movie 3
(X) Scary Movie 4
(X) American Pie
Total so far: 23

(X) American Pie 2
(X) American Wedding
( ) American Pie Band Camp
(X) Harry Potter 1
(X) Harry Potter 2
Total so far: 27

(X) Harry Potter 3
(X) Harry Potter 4
(X) Resident Evil 1
(X) Resident Evil 2
(X) The Wedding Singer
Total so far: 31

(X) Little Black Book
(X) The Village
( ) Lilo & Stitch
( ) Finding Nemo
( ) Finding Neverland
Total so far: 33

(X) Signs
(X) The Grinch
(X) Texas Chainsaw Massacre
(X) Texas Chainsaw Massacre: The Beginning
( ) White Chicks
Total so far: 37

(X) Butterfly Effect
(X) 13 Going on 30
(X) I, Robot
(X) Robots
(X) Dodgeball: A True Underdog Story
Total so far: 42

(X) Universal Soldier
( ) Lemony Snicket: A Series Of Unfortunate Events
( ) Along Came Polly
(X) Deep Impact
(X) KingPin
Total so far: 45

(X) Never Been Kissed
(X) Meet The Parents
(X) Meet the Fockers
( ) Eight Crazy Nights
( ) Joe Dirt
Total so far: 48

(X) King Kong
(X) A Cinderella Story
(X) The Terminal
( ) The Lizzie McGuire Movie
( ) Passport to Paris
Total so far: 51

(X) Dumb & Dumber
( ) Dumber & Dumberer
(X) Final Destination
(X) Final Destination 2
(X) Final Destination 3
Total so far: 55

(X) Halloween
(X) The Ring
( ) The Ring 2
( ) Surviving Christmas
( ) Flubber
Total so far: 57

(X) Harold & Kumar Go To White Castle
(X) Practical Magic
( ) Chicago
(X) Ghost Ship
(X) From Hell
Total so far: 61

(X) Hellboy
( ) Secret Window
(X) I Am Sam
(X) The Whole Nine Yards
(X) The Whole Ten Yards
Total so far: 65

(X) The Day After Tomorrow
(X) Child’s Play
(X) Seed of Chucky
(X) Bride of Chucky
(X) Ten Things I Hate About You
Total so far: 70

(X) Just Married
(X) Gothika
(X) Nightmare on Elm Street
(X) Sixteen Candles
( ) Remember the Titans
Total so far: 74

( ) Coach Carter
(X) The Grudge
( ) The Grudge 2
(X) The Mask
( ) Son Of The Mask
Total so far: 76

(X) Bad Boys
( ) Bad Boys 2
( ) Joy Ride
(X) Lucky Number SlevIn
(X) Ocean’s Eleven
Total so far: 79

(X) Ocean’s Twelve
(X) Bourne Identity
(X) Bourne Supremecy
( ) Lone Star
(X) Bedazzled
Total so far: 83

(X) Predator I
(X) Predator II
(X) The Fog
(X) Ice Age
(X) Ice Age 2: The Meltdown
Total so far: 88

( ) Curious George
(X) Independence Day
(X) Cujo
( ) A Bronx Tale
(X) Darkness Falls
Total so far: 89

(X) Christine
(X) E.T.
(X) Children of the Corn
( ) My Bosses Daughter
(X) Maid in Manhattan
Total so far: 94

(X) War of the Worlds
(X) Rush Hour
(X) Rush Hour 2
( ) Best Bet
(X) How to Lose a Guy in 10 Days
Total so far: 98

(X) She’s All That
( ) Calendar Girls
( ) Sideways
(X) Mars Attacks
(X) Event Horizon
Total so far: 101

(X) Ever After
(X) Wizard of Oz
(X) Forrest Gump
(X) Big Trouble in Little China
(X) The Terminator
Total so far: 106

(X) The Terminator 2
(X) The Terminator 3
(X) X-Men
(X) X-2
(X) X3
Total so far: 111

(X) Spider-Man
(X) Spider-Man 2
( ) Sky High
(X) Jeepers Creepers
( ) Jeepers Creepers 2
Total so far: 114

( ) Catch Me If You Can
(X) The Little Mermaid
(X) Freaky Friday
(X) Reign of Fire
( ) The Skulls
Total so far: 117

(X) Cruel Intentions
( ) Cruel Intentions 2
( ) The Hot Chick
(X) Shrek
(X) Shrek 2
Total so far: 120

( ) Swimfan
(X) Miracle on 34th street
( ) Old School
( ) The Notebook
(X) K-Pax
Total so far: 122

( ) Krippendorf’s Tribe
( ) A Walk to Remember
( ) Ice Castles
(X) Boogeyman
( ) The 40-year-old Virgin
Total so far: 123

(X) Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring
(X) Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers
(X) Lord of the Rings: Return Of the King
(X) Indiana Jones and the Raiders of the Lost Ark
(X) Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom
Total so far: 128

(X) Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade
( ) Base-ketball
( ) Hostel
( ) Waiting for Guffman
( ) House of 1000 Corpses
Total so far: 129

( ) Devils Rejects
(X) Elf
(X) Highlander
(X) Mothman Prophecies
( ) American History X
Total so far: 133

( ) Three
( ) The Jacket
( ) Kung Fu Hustle
( ) Shaolin Soccer
(X) Night Watch
Total so far: 134

(X) Monsters Inc.
(X) Titanic
(X) Monty Python and the Holy Grail
(X) Shaun Of the Dead
( ) Willard
Total so far: 138

( ) High Tension
(X) Club Dread
(X) Hulk
(X) Dawn Of the Dead
( ) Hook
Total so far: 141

(X) Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe
(X) 28 days later
(X) Orgazmo
(X) Phantasm
(X) Waterworld
Total so far: 146

(X) Kill Bill Vol. 1
(X) Kill Bill Vol. 2
(X) Mortal Kombat
(X) Wolf Creek
( ) Kingdom of Heaven
Total so far: 150

(X) the Hills Have Eyes
( ) I Spit on Your Grave
( ) The Last House on the Left
( ) Re-Animator
(X) Army of Darkness
Total so far: 152

(X) Star Wars Ep. I The Phantom Menace
(X) Star Wars Ep. II Attack of the Clones
(X) Star Wars Ep. III Revenge of the Sith
(X) Star Wars Ep. IV A New Hope
(X) Star Wars Ep. V The Empire Strikes Back
Total so far: 157

(X) Star Wars Ep. VI Return of the Jedi
(X) Ewoks: Caravan Of Courage
(X) Ewoks: The Battle For Endor
(X) The Matrix
(X) The Matrix: Reloaded
Total so far: 162

(X) The Matrix: Revolutions
( ) Animatrix
(X )Evil Dead
(X) Evil Dead 2
( ) Team America: World Police
Total so far: 165

( ) Red Dragon
(X) Silence of the Lambs
(X) Hannibal
( ) Fiddler on the Roof
( ) The Lost Skeleton of Cadavra
Total So far : 167

(X) Much Ado About Nothing
(X) Rozencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead
(X) The Fifth Element
(X) My Fair Lady
(X) Sabrina
Grand Total: 171

2007-04-09T12:46:00.000-06:00

I ran into this Book MEME a few times and decided to post it. I am thinking it will be a week of MEME'S here at Chez Jinxsa.

The way it works:Look at the list of (100) books below.Bold the ones you’ve read.Italicize the ones you want to read.Leave the ones you aren't interested in alone.

1. The Da Vinci Code (Dan Brown)
2. Pride and Prejudice (Jane Austen)
3. To Kill A Mockingbird (Harper Lee)
4. Gone With The Wind (Margaret Mitchell)
5. The Lord of the Rings: Return of the King (Tolkien)
6. The Lord of the Rings: Fellowship of the Ring (Tolkien)
7. The Lord of the Rings: Two Towers (Tolkien)
8. Anne of Green Gables (L.M. Montgomery)
9. Outlander (Diana Gabaldon)
10. A Fine Balance (Rohinton Mistry)
11. Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire (Rowling)
12. Angels and Demons (Dan Brown)
13. Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix (Rowling)
14. A Prayer for Owen Meany (John Irving)
15. Memoirs of a Geisha (Arthur Golden)
16. Harry Potter and the Philosopher’s Stone (Rowling)
17. Fall on Your Knees (Ann-Marie MacDonald)
18. The Stand (Stephen King)
19. Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban(Rowling)
20. Jane Eyre (Charlotte Bronte)
21. The Hobbit (Tolkien)
22. The Catcher in the Rye (J.D. Salinger)
23. Little Women (Louisa May Alcott)
24. The Lovely Bones (Alice Sebold)
25 . Life of Pi (Yann Martel)
26. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy (Douglas Adams)
27. Wuthering Heights (Emily Bronte)
28. The Lion, The Witch and the Wardrobe (C. S. Lewis)
29. East of Eden (John Steinbeck)
30. Tuesdays with Morrie(Mitch Albom)
31. Dune (Frank Herbert)
32. The Notebook (Nicholas Sparks)
33. Atlas Shrugged (Ayn Rand)
34. 1984 (Orwell)
35. The Mists of Avalon (Marion Zimmer Bradley)
36. The Pillars of the Earth (Ken Follett)
37. The Power of One (Bryce Courtenay)
38. I Know This Much is True (Wally Lamb)
39. The Red Tent (Anita Diamant)
40. The Alchemist (Paulo Coelho)
41. The Clan of the Cave Bear (Jean M. Auel)
42. The Kite Runner (Khaled Hosseini)
43. Confessions of a Shopaholic (Sophie Kinsella)
44. The Five People You Meet In Heaven (Mitch Albom)
45. Bible
46. Anna Karenina (Tolstoy)
47. The Count of Monte Cristo (Alexandre Dumas)
48. Angela’s Ashes (Frank McCourt)
49. The Grapes of Wrath (John Steinbeck)
50. She’s Come Undone (Wally Lamb)
51. The Poisonwood Bible (Barbara Kingsolver)
52. A Tale of Two Cities (Dickens)
53. Ender’s Game (Orson Scott Card)
54. Great Expectations (Dickens)
55. The Great Gatsby (Fitzgerald)
56. The Stone Angel (Margaret Laurence)
57. Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets (Rowling)
58. The Thorn Birds (Colleen McCullough)
59.The Handmaiden's Tale (Margaret Attwood)
60. The Time Traveller’s Wife (Audrey Niffenegger)
61. Crime and Punishment (Fyodor Dostoyevsky)
62. The Fountainhead (Ayn Rand)
63. War and Peace (Tolstoy)
64. Interview With The Vampire (Anne Rice)
65. Fifth Business (Robertson Davis)
66. One Hundred Years Of Solitude (Gabriel Garcia Marquez)
67. The Sisterhood of the Travelling Pants (Ann Brashares)
68. Catch-22 (Joseph Heller)
69. Les Miserables (Hugo)
70. The Little Prince (Antoine de Saint-Exupery)
71. Bridget Jones’ Diary (Fielding)
72. Love in the Time of Cholera (Marquez)
73. Shogun (James Clavell)
74. The English Patient (Michael Ondaatje)
75. The Secret Garden (Frances Hodgson Burnett)
76. The Summer Tree (Guy Gavriel Kay)
77. A Tree Grows in Brooklyn (Betty Smith)
78. The World According To Garp (John Irving)
79. The Diviners (Margaret Laurence)
80. Charlotte’s Web (E.B. White)
81. Not Wanted On The Voyage (Timothy Findley)
82. Of Mice And Men (Steinbeck)
83. Rebecca (Daphne DuMaurier)
84. Wizard’s First Rule (Terry Goodkind)
85. Emma (Jane Austen)
86. Watership Down(Richard Adams)
87. Brave New World (Aldous Huxley)
88. The Stone Diaries (Carol Shields)
89. Blindness (Jose Saramago)
90. Kane and Abel (Jeffrey Archer)
91. In The Skin Of A Lion (Ondaatje)
92. Lord of the Flies (Golding)
93. The Good Earth (Pearl S. Buck)
94. The Secret Life of Bees (Sue Monk Kidd)
95. The Bourne Identity (Robert Ludlum)
96. The Outsiders (S.E. Hinton)
97. White Oleander (Janet Fitch)
98. A Woman of Substance (Barbara Taylor Bradford)
99. The Celestine Prophecy (James Redfield)
100. Ulysses (James Joyce)

Wow..45 of them. And just to continue with a theme, it seems if I want to read something I just go out and do it. There are very few books on the list that I want to read that I haven't gotten around to it. By the way 3 Books you should go and read that aren't on here? Much Ado About Nothing by Shakespeare. Once and Future King by White. And Agnes Gray by Anne Bronte.

Anna Socks

2007-04-08T18:54:00.000-06:00

Remember these? (you know 4 posts back)

Well contrary to my nature I actually am following through on a plan. I have a lot of stash here that had big plans and are getting kinda jealous. I am afraid they are going to transform into a noose if I keep being so unfair.

Still I am a big believer in "signs" and these socks have a few things going for them. Including the fact the camera miraculously turned up while I was trying it on. You know that means the fates are wanting me to be wearing these socks, and then Ohbz showed up. Ohbz has nothing to do with the fate of the sock in fact I'm just starting to worry how much of a diva he's becoming, I already have a scientologist cat I can't risk getting a diva too.

So far I can say this is an amazing yarn to work wih. It may not come across in the photo but it's shiny!! And much more important it matches the new polish on my toe nails. This is crutial. I usually only have 1 colour of toenail polish a summer and this year seems to be a teal/blue hue. (Sometimes I feel like a rhyme sometimes I don't. ) The pattern is rediculously easy to memorize with a 4 row repeat (2 and 4 are Knit too) But it looks cool.

Warning, British knitting terms are different. I knew this going in but when your really tired look for a translation cuz North American "yarn forwards" just don't look right, you know, at all. Actually I looks kinda dumb. Not that I did that. Just saying. ;>

My Sp 10 package

2007-04-07T12:30:00.000-06:00

NEWS ITEM

Lost, one digital camera. Last scene in the vicinity of yarn bins. Answers to the name of "What the hell is wrong with this piece of crap now?" The connector cable has been questioned thouroughly but denies being in the country at all last week. It's story is plausible because no one has seen the cable all for the past 10 days. Public is advised that said camera has a tendancy to flash at inappropriate times, so keep eyes partially averted. No reward is currently offered as it is expected to show up the day after owner leaves on vacation.

Ok I had to improvise on this post as the camera has been AWOL since last Saturday. (I think the dog is taking pictures of the cats in the litter box for blackmail purposes or the cats got sick of random blindings and my camera is now sleeping with the fishes.) My lovely secret pal hails from NY and sent me a wonderful package that arrived last week. I don't have pictures to show....or do I? (NOTE: when in doubt cheat)

My SP got me a wonderful graphic novel. It's the X-men's Pehonix End Song. Which is a bit of a lie. Dude. Marvel comics kills off every character a year and brings them back proptly. Find me any X-men thats been around for more than 5 years that hasn't been dead. Luckily I watched Days of Our Lives long before reading comics and I was already familiar with the dead being brought back for "one more storyline". I have always loved Jean Grey, I thnk that they have totally turned her into the poster child for emo trauma, mind you. She (to beat the Days/X-Man metaphor to death) is totally Marlena, she had an evil twin/clone, she's been possesed, she's had stalkers, she's been dead more times than you can shake a stick at... Still the current writers are trying to streamline her story a bit and I love what they are doing with her. I read this comic from beginning to end the moment I took it out of the box. It Rocks So Hard.

She sent me 2 balls of this, Plymouth Yarn-Heaven. It looks much more orange than this pic. It's so soft and plush. I am thinking of making some kind of stuffie from it. I was thinking ...rabbit...but then I'ed have to give it away. Rabbits are scary. I don't like anything with bigger teeth than brains, it's why I stopped going to the bars. But really you have to feel how squidgie this is. I want a stuffie from it, must find stuffie pattern. SO Soft and Cozy!

Malbridgo. Look at the camazing colours! I had been eyeing the yarn at Sweet Sheep and I was thinking about trying it then this came. Oh it's soo neat1 Check out the colours! It's got about 200 yards and I was thinking about a crochet scarf from it. BUT then Michelle got the exact same colourway in the shop!! So ...you thinking what I am thinking? Either a cable fingerless glove set or...winter skirt... (I love skirts). All of the colours in it are on the top of my favourite colour list! I'm really looking forward to using it!

There was also a book mark that I think had the origina cover from the book Eragon, it was so freaky. I just watched the movie the night before and had bought the book on my lunch hour the day the package arrived. I also got a Batman jurnal that I am marking project progress in. It's hanging out in my knitting bag with my Anna sock as I type.

Thanks Secret Pal! I really loved my package!!

Dreaming of Prizes

2007-03-28T18:54:00.000-06:00

The March Sweater Madness hosted by Michelle of www.TheSweetSheep.com is still on going. In April it will be UFO month. Cool. It's not all contest all the time it's more like a mini cheering section / KAL kinda thing. Everyone is welcome! (http://marchsweatermadness.blogspot.com/) Back to the contest. I won! My sweater may be a bit big on me but I was done first! I think I can either resew it or just give it to a coworker whom it does fit. I won a big parcel of prizes!

So I am trying to do a big dream big of all the prizes. So far only the Cherry Tree Hill has "spoken" to me. It wants to be (tah da). I love lacey socks but all the verigated yarns in the world look like rabid drooling howler monkeys in this pattern. In a semi-solid maybe it'ed work but when this came out I only had self striping and verigated. I looked like butt. But hot pick lace socks....I'm cool with that

The Self striping wants to be a cabled sock. I can feel it. Cookie A. released a few patterns for purchase. When Sweet Sheep get thier's in I'll be first in line. I really want the new sock book from Interweave too. The Socks That Rock is very precious it's the first and only skein I have of it...the pressure to use just the right pattern is extreme. (Plus hello the colourway has ORANGE) No way am I going to play fast and loose with STR in orange.

The really rocking pink and orange in the middle may end up being a hat. It's not superwash. So not so much with socks but again I love the colours and it's soo fantabulously soft...I want to say beret but I'ed never wear one....Definitly another one that's marked for some currently mysterious yet wonderful future.

The possum has very very secret plans. Very pop culture ...maybe a little ARRRR.. ;>9that is the only clue you get) The knitpicks gossemer in lime and teal is going to become some very fancy looking lace scarves probably of my own invention. I have a few great stitchionaries , I should manage to figure out my own shawl pattern....right?

Lots of sky flavoured pie I know but I got plans and that makes me very happy. Tonight I work on my gummi sock and my coat. Got a great new movie to watch and some amazing flavoured tea, life is good.

Knitter's Treat Exchange

2007-03-28T09:32:00.000-06:00

Knitters Treat Exchange Questionnaire
1. What's your favourite type of yarn?

brightly verigated in colours that suit eachother but you wouldn't think of normally

2. What's your least favourite type of yarn?

ribbon yarn is icky

3. What's the first thing you do when you visit a new yarn shop?

people watch for a bit, usually i just go from the right all the way around 9typically shoppers start on the right of the entrance and go around in a circle from there.

4. What other crafts do you do / would like to do?

I'm not a crafy person other than knitting, I can crochet a bit but for the most part I just knit.
My other hobbies are video games, reading, movies and the like

5. What magazines do you currently subscribe to?

IK, Vouge Knitting, Knit Simple, Knit 1, Crochet!

6. Put this type of magazine in order of preference:Knitting / Crochet / Other Craft / Food / Home / Fashion / Celebrity Gossip / Garden

knitting
fashion
Food
celebrity gossip (think OK! not National Enquirer)
Crochet
Home
Garden

7. What items do you like to knit / crochet?

There isn't any type of project I don't enjoy specifically, I prefer knitting to crochet and flat to knitting in the round.

8. Are you allergic to anything?

mostly things that shouldn't be a problem for the swap, eg Salmon, Sunlight detergant, and such

9. What do you like to* smell of?(*This is not a typo. The question is: What do you like to smell of)

Ralph Lauren's Romance and Ralph
Fruity smells like mango from the Body Shop
roses

10. What's your favourite way to relax?

not doing anything (I never seem to get enough opportunities to not do stuff)

11. You're stood in front of a Victorian style sweetshop, an Italian cafe, an old fashioned bakery and a dainty tea room. Where do you go first?

Bakery
Sweetshop/tea room
Coffeeehouse

12. What do you come out with?

apple or cherry pie
something with caramel
flavoured tea (my current faves are lavender earl grey and baked apple roobius)

13. Where do you go next?

yarn or book store

14. Any other words of wisdom for your pal?

I have a ton of other questionaires so you can always look at them. I really like movies and such so things like Primere magazine or Cinescape are pretty good ideas. I'ed love to see some foreign knitting magazines.

Dream Big

2007-03-26T21:13:00.000-06:00

I'm calling this dream big to show project ideas I have. Let's face facts I usually have a lot of the go anyways so while I may never get the projects knit I want the freedom to at least dream of getting it done.

May I present to you the very first "dream big" project-The Anna Socks from Rowan 40. I had cast in on in Black but it was uninspired, not me, real melvin. I think they would be nice but when I saw this colourway "Jelly Bean Merino Tencil Sock Yarn by All Things Heather" at the Sweet Sheep. I knew what the yarn really wanted to be. For 2 days (I sware I should get a medal) I sat back knowing that someone out there saw the very same potential for these skiens that I did...but no one stepped forward. I obsessed cheking the page several times a day-but no one scooped them up! So obviously it was destiny. Fate. True Love. (CURSE YOU FATE! It was supposed to be a cute billionaire not 2 skeins of yarn!! Of course it IS really cute yarn...yeah I got no real complaints.)

Also is it a warning sign that some skeins I want just for the names...sKNITches Zombie for example. It's nice yarn greys and red.... but it's called Zombie...dudes...I am a little heartbroken that I missed it. I really hope they come out with a companion yarn called "Brrraaaaiiins". Cuz dat would be Sweet.

Secret Colour Swap

2007-03-22T10:53:00.000-06:00

Well my postman came to my door yesterday and I missed him. But Ipicked Up my packages bright and early today. I had 3(!!) waiting for me. Including mY colour swap box from the lovely Gill from http://knittingatnumber9.blogspot.com/. She knew I loved orange and the box was full of orangy Goodness! All the yarns are from England too so it's going to have an extra special place in my heart.

See: how well she knows me. There was twix (was being the operative word. The colours are brighter than the picture but it was a cloudy day and the room didn't have much light (my flash "bleached" the yarns).

I want to say a big thank you to the lovely Gill! I'm really thrilled with all the gifts!

Oh a p.s. to the story is that my downstream pal the Knitty Prof recieved her package, you can find her blog at http://beadznyarnworks.blogspot.com/ .

I've been measuring this a lot.

2007-03-22T10:27:00.000-06:00

Of course I finally take some pictures an Ohbz, aka the biggest cat ever, decides to flop down to act as scale....but it's hard to punish a Jedi cat-especially a rather dim-witted one. (Ohbz's official name is orange Blossom the First shortened to OB1 then for some reason just pronounced as Ohbz)

I'm about 11 inches up so I have about 3 more pattern repeats to go until the arm holes. Knitting feels really slow going on this. I have to remind myself there is 111 stitches in each row but it still seems to be dragging.

Luckily I have a distraction: Gummi Bunny Socks. (Well if he's going to lie there he's may as well model) I'll finish turning the heel tonight and motor through the foot on my weekend lunch hours. The sock looks kinda shrimpy but again this cat is really huge, think medium sized dog and you'ed be on the right track. Also my ball winding skills are mediocre at best.
I know what your thinking , only 2 projects? Well I am trying to pursuade mom to knit the strap to my messanger bag. It took me about 5 tries at 4 inches length before I realized it wasn't going to work. There are a lot of impatience vibes rewound into that Noro. But again only 2 projects on the go isn't my style. Remember way back I had wanted to knit Vivika from some recycled yarn?

This yarn to be exact.

Well it's decided to be a sweater coat. To be exact the City Coat from Domiknitrix. I am really hoping to have it done by the middle of next month. Repeat after me: It's Garter stitch with polar weight yarn on really big needles...It's garter stitch with polar weight yarn on really big needles...it's garter stitch.....

My Yahoo Messanger Has Been Wire Tappedby..well, me. Apparently.

2007-03-19T19:55:00.000-06:00

The hamper and the hamster thing isn't the pointy part of this conversation but I thought it was funny. To preface I am doing major closet verhaul and washing everything I want to continure to own. Today I have been saying a lot of...when did I get that?, Or I've missed that, Remember how cute this was when it FIT (usually the last said in a much bitter voice followed by chocolate and pouting.)

Jinxsa Salem: ok i need hampers and places to lay sweaters flat to dry
Jinxsa Salem: many... many... hampers
Jinxsa Salem: like 8
YB: thats not good
YB: Oh woe is me! Oh woe is me! I used to have a Hamster Tree! But it was eaten by a newt, and now I have no cuddly fruit! Oh woe is me! Oh woe is me! I used to have a Hamster Tree!
Jinxsa Salem: wow...woe
YB: no. Oh woe
Jinxsa Salem: i have a problem
YB: oh?
Jinxsa Salem: i need another 12 step
YB: d'oh
Jinxsa Salem: http://knitterstreatexchange.blogspot.com/
YB: another one?
Jinxsa Salem: http://knitalongs.xaviermusketeer.com/ then i found this
Jinxsa Salem: scroll down
YB: can you join 57 different knit exchanges?
Jinxsa Salem: um maybe
Jinxsa Salem: i probably SHOULDN'T tho
YB: *sighs*
Jinxsa Salem: ...probably...
Jinxsa Salem: ...kinda....
Jinxsa Salem: ....maybe...
Jinxsa Salem: ..sorta...
Jinxsa Salem: ...ish.
YB: snicker
YB: do I need to start an intervetion?
Jinxsa Salem: please see above
Jinxsa Salem: this wouldn't be such a problem if people bought me yarn
Jinxsa Salem: just random yarn showing up at my house
Jinxsa Salem: ...as long as it was good yarn
YB: he he he
Jinxsa Salem: <--yarn freak.
YB: very much so
Jinxsa Salem: <-- not planning to change that about myself either
YB: lol
Jinxsa Salem: <-- suggests people deal with it
YB: <-- suggest you should take care of that third person problem you seem to have.

Secret Pal 10

2007-03-12T17:21:00.000-06:00

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

I love just about anything that doesn't squeek, right now I am eyeing a lot of superwash to use for gifts (when you don't kjnow how they will be washed it's safest)
My favourite things are really just soft yarns in bright vibrant colours.
I'm not a huge cotton fan but I've never really used a good cotton before.
koigu rocks.
am a Socks That Rock virgin

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a big vase for my straights and a little jar for some of my dpns or a make-up bag depending on thier length.
My cirulars are from sets for the most part so they go back in the case. mY glass circs (love'em) stay in a box when not in use to prevent breakage

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn? Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

I've been knitting 2 years this coming August (so a year and a half) I learned from a few books and am still learning mainly with online tutorials, more books and a few knitting forums. Next month I'll be taking a couple of classes during a trip to Toronto.
I'm an adventurous Intermediate

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

amazon.ca
www.thesweetsheep.com

5. What's your favorite scent?

roses
apples

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

it really changes, I love caramel and mint chocolate but not together (shudder) I just tried the lidnt double milk mini eggs and they are yummy. I am not certain my twix phase is over, but in the interests of not dying of malnutritionI've been limiting them.

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

I have a drop spindle, fiber and books. I do not have a clue tho. It's one of the courses I'll be taking at the Knitter's Frolic.
I crochet a bit.

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

I love soundtracks, techno and heavy metal/opera techno remixes

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

I really love Orange at the moment, I like pinks, teals, golds, grey, browns, orange (just thougt I'ed mention that again) and purple. My favourite yarn of the moment is a verigated deep purple, teal and orange. I really just love wild and crazy mixes of colour. The brighter the better.

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

I'm at home helping take care of my parents who have health issues and yeah I got pets. 4 cats and 2 dogs.

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

I wear all of them, but the only poncho pattern I ever liked was from issue 40 of Rowan and a big wool cable. I have yet been brave enough to wear it in public. So probably ponchos are a bad idea.

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

anything new and challenging!

13. What are you knitting right now?

Vivika for March Sweater Madness, a pair of monkey socks, and a pair of stockinette socks from Sweet Sheep's Gummy Bunny.
Next up-the dollar and a half cardigan from the new Interweave and city coat from the book domiknitrix

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

of course, people who don't are tres lame.

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

straight and metal although sadly with dpn's i have to say, size matters. I don't like dealing with anything longer than 6" if I can avoid it. I've been wanting to try Pony Plastic dpns.

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

I have a ball winder and I still have to press people into being my own personal swift.

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

old, at least a year and a month.

18. What is your favorite holiday?

I like them all I think, Easter and Halloween and Christmas. I'm not really religious so you don't have to worry about that whole side to things.

19. Is there anything that you collect?

I like polar bears, and fantasy animals (unicorns, dragons, chimeras,ect)
I love sci-fi and fantasy movies, tv shows and books
my favourite author is Tanya Huff
I have about 200 movies
I am slowly working on getting the entire Star Wars book set, and am so very not even close yet.
I play a lot of video games I love the Sims for pc, I have a wii, an x-box 360 and a ps2 ( I have no desire at the moment to get a ps3 unless they get a karaoke revolution that is exclusive to them)
I love old school toons
I love DC and Marvel comics!

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

I buy every magazine I can get my hands on when they come into the store. I love interweave knits!
I'ed like to find a copy of Confessions of a Knitting Heritic
Lucy Neatby's dvd collection **drool**

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

I'ed like to improve my finishing
colour work
magic loop

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

I completly heart knitting socks. I like the dpn method much more than the 2 circs method.
I wear about an 8 shoe (it depends on if I have been working super long shifts or not)

23. When is your birthday?

August 10, 1977

Misc: I never mind getting used movies or games, even books. I don't think it's tacky-it's frugal. (this came up in another swap figured it may come up again) Bootlegs are ok too.

Secret Colour Swap Redux

2007-02-07T16:25:00.000-07:00

Before I start a quick question "Am I the only one with a deep seeded loathing for the new Blogger?" Just Curious.

1. What are your top three favorite colors?
I currently have a total deep seeded passion for Orange. I don't understand it but there you are. Orange is followed by Pink, Purple and Teal (ok it's 4 but I am a girl of many moods).
But wait there is more. To show the depths of my colour lust I decided to include some of my favorite verigated yarns I have on my lust list. anything goes with varigated.

I also joined the project spectrum (http://lollygirl.com/blog/?p=585#comments) and would welcome anything that fits into that.

2. What crafts do you really enjoy? I am pretty much strictly a knitting girl. I crochet a bit and I can crossstitch but I lub me my knitting, quite probably because I feel I completely suck at everything else ;>. I'll be getting my first drop spindle this week too!

3. What products do you really covet? I need some metal 5-6" DPN, wood breaks to easy and 7 inches makes me think I am going to impale myself in the eye.

4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things? I have great quanities of "Geeky" Activities. Sci-fi/Fantasy tv, movies and books, BBC tv (People please go out and watch Gohrmangast and My Hero you'll thank me), I heart my mp3 player and I own a WII and an X-BOX 360. I also completely am absorbed back into DC and Marvel comics!

5. Is there anything you collect? Not really at the moment. I have been buying a load of TV box sets and I heart cartoons from the 80's on, I have a pretty decent collection of Jem, She-ra, He-Man, Voltron, Transformers, Gummi Bears, Darkwing Duck, The Batman, Justice League and so forth. I also love Dallas as it's perfect knitting tv.

6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol? Leo and a **shudder** snake (ewww)

7.What are your favorite……scents/smells?… Apples and roses

types of music and/or bands?…Heavy Metal, Techno and Opera. Preferably a combination of all 3....seriously...

authors?… Tanya Huff, The Yarn Harlot, I like Star Wars Books ( and don't have that many of them either), I heart Shakespeare (go rent Keneth Brahnagh's Much Ado About Nothing-if you find it for sale anywhere let me know!)

animals?… polar bears.

places to shop?… http://www.thesweetsheep.com/ EVERYONE SHOULD SHOP HERE!, I also shop at Rams wool in Winnipeg, Red Bird Knits, and the Knittery in Australia

season?…winter

yarn/fabric/paper/other craft supplies?…I am pretty flexable, I don't like yarn that squeeks they make my teeth itch

candies or goodies? I heart Twix, caramilk, caramels, toffees (I can't eat the really sticky stuff until I get my teeth fixed tho, Milk duds are amazing but not worth the filling I lost)

8. Do you have any wish lists? amazon.ca and @ sweet sheep

9. Are you allergic to anything? Yes but if you ship me shellfish through the mail I think the allergy would be the least of my concerns *phew*, some old school red dyes, the detrgent sunlight, and probably some really rare things I can't remember because I never come in contact with them.

10. Do you have any pets? What are they? I have 4 cats of varying degrees of crazy and 2 dogs, a collie who is the worst behaved dog ever and I love her to death anyways-most of the time- and a mini schnauzer who is a total lump and I don't want to like but he grows on you, or has it been so long since he moved he's molded?

That's about it I have the SP questionaire on there and the previous colour swap answers so if you can't find what you are looking for here you can either ask me or look there!

My Last SP package sniff

2007-01-18T00:27:00.000-07:00

This post is dedicated to my SP who blogs at http://www.spinnybunt.blogspot.com/. You should totally go and tell her how awesome she is and sympatize about the frogging of the sweater. Dudes. I AM SO THERE. But more on that in a few days as I am still fairly bitter. And I didn't get half as far as she did! But anyways look at this package and tell me she doesn't rock. You can't, can you?

There is Fleece Artist, in my favourite, Aran weight. Aran weight totally kicks worsted butt. (Is it odd I have favourite weights of yarn, that variations in say (4) on the weight chart are almost distingushable to me and that I have degrees of, for example, Chunky weight all catagorized in my mind. It is odd isn't it?)

She spotted that on my sock swap questionaire that there was a general leaning to orange so I got handpainted Opal sock yarn!

She went to this Japanese dollar store and got me some really cool knittng stuff like a lint shaver, itiy (and possibly even bitty) scissors, a journal, stitch holders (just in time for my fingerless mitts), some leaves that are supposed to smell like apples ( they probably do but I haven't opened them yet as it's really late and I should have been in bed an hour ago but there is new yarn that must be acknowledged as I didn't last time and I still am very self flogging about it and with like hard stuff not like yarn) In the bottom left corner...that wee thing there....dudes, it's a stitch counter. so cool.

Because I like to encourage a little yarn porn when I can here is a skein shot of the 2 yarns:

I just want to say publicly that spinnybunt has been a most excellent secret pal to me, even though I really fell off the ball in the middle of it (I figured a few things out today which I'll share later when I feel up to it). I fell so far off the ball I didn't even know there was a ball to be honest. But she's really the best anyone could ever hope for so here is a big huge public

thank you!!

And I hope you wont mind my haunting of your comments ;>

Second Sock Syndrome Swap

2007-01-09T14:40:00.000-07:00

I joined another swap tho this is tailored for a girl who only knits left socks.

1. What are you favorite sock yarns?
I really don't know I have very little of the good stuff at the moment. Of all the ones I have tried I love Trekking the best followed by Lorna's Laces. I think with my rather casual relationship with sock guage thicker sock weights are best (not neccesarily sport weight). My SP gave me some Koigu that I really don't think I am good enough to knit socks with.

2. What are your least favorite sock yarns? Anything you just cannot use?
I found Bernat Sox for a buck at Zellers, it wasn't worth it. My big pet peeve is scratchy and splitty yarns.

3. What method do you prefer to use (DPN's, 2 circs, 1 circ, etc.)
I have only ever used dpns tho I am anxious to start with magic loop.

4. Is there any method that you cannot use?
please see above

5. What are you favorite colors?
I am not a big fan of primaries, tho mainly just blues it seems. I am drifting towards oranges. Put it to you this way, with the exception of Wickedness there is nothing in this group I don't like http://www.thesweetsheep.com/xcart/home.php?cat=84 My wishlist is also rather decieving as there are a few gifts for other people on it.

6. Are you a beginner, intermediate, or more advanced sock knitter?
I think I am an intermediate to advanced knitter but a beginning sock knitter. I love cables and lace have a resistance to multi-coloured knitting but I have had a great deal of difficulty with socks as they seems to stretch and stretch and eventually become odd shapped hats.

7. Any other info you want to share (such as other likes, dislikes, hobbies, etc)?
I knit, crochet, I plan to sew but shopping is much more fun. I have the biggest dvd collection of anyone I know. I nurse my inner geekette with sci-fi/fantasy novels with a current leanings towards Luna Books series and and Star Wars and a dose of D&D. I love most comics but budget wise I no longer buy them as that budget has gotten slotted into yarn money but I keep up with my favourites over the net (most marvel and dc superhero comics). Triggered by the realization that when I wear white I look taller I have begun purchasing more and more white clothing and have been really getting into polar bears, be it stuffies, clothing or photos. I was raised on 80's toons and have a mounting collection of them. All this would be well and good if I ever got time to watch them. I do make time to watch britcoms, Battlestar Galactica, Jericho, Lost (well only on dvd) and Smallville. I take care of my parents and we have 4 cats and 2 dogs.

8. Last, but not least, what are your sock measurements? My foot is an 8 but socks for a 7 1/2 usually feel more comfortable It's not unusually wide.

Misc sock info: I have size 1 US dpns, I need to pick up thinner ones as , again my guage is wacky. I have not yet bought any circs for magic loop but that will be forthcomming in the next week. I own 2 sock books "Socks, Socks, Socks" and "Vintage Socks" by Nancy Bush.

New and Improved Doesn't Mean It Works

2007-01-09T14:22:00.000-07:00

Ever since I switched from the old Blogger to new blogger, I haven't been able to post. This whole weekend I wasn't able to log in up until today in fact. Only with computers can an upgrade mean you have a 50% chance of making this work. **eyeroll** The boot up music for the new Windows beta is the funeral march. Quote the family programmer, "You want it better-buy v2.0, you want it to work buy v2.2"

I can't decide if it's completely mad or absolutely f*ing brilliant. Proabably a bit of both. I still miss DOS, it made me feel smart. At home I have Windows and at work I use "the penguin" I can't say I prefer either. They are what they are and they each have thier lovely little quirks. At work I have to get the tech guys reinstall the O/S so I can have a tool bar again. I have only been asking them to fix it for 2 years. At home my browser won't open links unless I click it while holding down CTRL. This has also been for a year and alas I have no tech guys to ask for help.

I have a router installed and I can't move it. I tried to change the side of the desk it was on, from the left of my monitor to the right and it stopped working entirely. Moved it back to the left and it resumed working. This complicates matters as I am trying to add my 360 to the router. There is a wireless modem available for the great white whale but it costs a fairly high % of paycheck. A % that is only ever reserved for the essencials, food and yarn.

The question I have been asking myself is "Why do we put up with it?" We consider ourselves lucky if a computer boots when we want it too, prints the pages you ask it too and so forth even when complies on only the rarest of occasions. Is there any thing in our lives that is so inconsistant that we tolerate?

And then it hit me. Well actually tried to crawl up my leg.

Cats.

In which I officially acknowledge that I suck

2007-01-04T18:03:00.000-07:00

My last post was the 18th. Well Christmas but that one doesn't count. I can post really I can but you see there is a problem. I got an XBox 360 for Christmas and, well, it's pretty much occupying almost every free moment- ask the laundry basket ;>. I have bought in a little over a week

Knights of the Old Republic, One and Two (tyvm)
Fable
Soul Caliber 3
Prey
X-Men Legends 2
Dead Rising, which dispite my absolute love of Zombie movies gave me nightmares... wait... so do zombie movies... but I love me some living dead-am reading The Cell even though I swore never to read another Stephen King book again, cuz he isn't much of a finisher, is he?

On my list is Ultimate Marvel Superheroes, FEAR, Perfect Dark, and Viva Pinata... I admit it... but when i look on all the XBox Live chats and see people flocking to this game (Including the FPS Guys) I know I got to try me some of this. Assuming I can figure out how to network it. Also I want the new Karaoke game but that is for the PS2 and that is a whole other list Starting with FF12 and FF7. I also would heart time to play it but as I haven't won the lotto dispite what my email may say work must be done.

Next Post in which I completely hack Blogger to make it accept pictures of SP stuff and my knitting to follow this weekend.

Happy Holidays

2006-12-25T11:19:00.000-07:00

To You and Yours, From Me and Mine.

No Matter what you are celebrating this season, make it happy, fun and lasting.

Is dog fur a tree trimming?

2006-12-18T08:35:00.000-07:00

How about full grown cats? Sam Sam and Spooky have been spotted perched high up in the boughs of our Christmas Tree. Ohbz has tired twice but he has knocked the tree over, at 2 am then apparently jumped on my dad in bed to specifically tell him "I didn't do it" 30 pounds of Ohbz with fish breath not the way to wake up. Though if he sits on your chest you may not wake up at all....

Goldie has taken it as her personal duty to protect the tree, in her mind indoor doggie plumbing, from the cats. She chases them away and sleeps under the tree, only problem is if she is laying beneath the tree and a cat approaches that side of the room she jumps up and chases them knocking the tree over, so I am not sure what she is protecting the tree from, but she is vry proud of herself. She seems to also enjoy rubbing against our faux forestry, as the bristles are a good comb so we have some , um... extra fluffy snow on the base of our tree. I put tinfoil on the base of the because it's supposed to discourage cats from goinging around or up it (btw it works for the day). Ohbz discovered a path that minimized the tinfoilness and then showed each cat in turn. It was funny he led them one after another to show them how to bypass the tin foil. Even my cats have the Christmas Spirit!

Spooky now loves tinfoil and has been caught sleeping under it, when asked he said "So the ailens can't reprogram my brain!" His behavior has gotten progressively more unusual and diva like since we let him star in a major motion picture. You have probably heard of John Travolta's "The Boy in the Plastic Bubble " (http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0074236/). Well a few weeks ago we we approched by a few folks from LaLa Land and Spooky was Tapped to play lead in the sequal : "The Cat in the Plastic Bubble" The producers were kind enough to send some publicity photos.

I think the Scientologists got to him. He was spotted jumping on the couch proclaiming his love for the froggie cat nip squeekie. Were planning an intervention followed by an eggnog social.

Mitten Knittin Kitten Muffin Yo.

2006-12-15T08:24:00.000-07:00

I got a little care package from Elann yesterday/ I ordered some of their Kidd Silk Haze. It's Ok not as soft as I'ed like. I think I am going to make a Christmas scarf. Or a few. So behind on the Christmas knitting. 1 FO ain't going to cut it, You know. I need to catch the flu. I can garter stitch with flu. Hell I can garter stitch while having a root canal, ask me how I know.

Also from Elann I ordered this book: ( Edit:I just checked Elann I think I got thier last copy! And I couldn't find it on any other sites either.)

I had 2 balls of Elann's Baby Silk so I could start some right away. Which I did. I figured out the fringe on it and all, but again my dpn gauge is pretty scary. I am making mittens for a 5 year old but they fit me. Well, the cuff does. I'm not that fast at all. I don't plan on keeping the mittens, mittens I want to do a repeat of the pattern then I'm frogging it. It is destined to become this.

Probably not in time for Christmas. I want to master 2 colour knitting? Well then I have to do it. Next stop will be intarsia land....later... I may order more skeins and make matching mitts. I bought a new winter coat this year(White makes me look tall) and am knitting a neapolitan scarf (pink, white and tan disco yarn) and I want a matching Latvian gloves and a fair isle hat in matching pattern. I think I will use Baby Cashmere for myself.

Muffin? A few years ago, maybe one, I was playing an online fantasy game, a mild free version of WoW. A young 13 year old girl tried to scam me out of gold coins and loot. And she tried to do it very very badly. It was laughable. But really I was nice about it. When she realized I wasn't going to be "conned" she called me a muffin. I spent the next few hours following her around bugging her about the muffin thing. Really I was so nice to her and got called a Muffin for my trouble. The consensus of my American Friends was Blueberry, My Canadian friends all say Tim Horton's fruit explosion.

Santa Baby

2006-12-13T11:47:00.000-07:00

The past few years at work I do some quick little song parodies as it nears Christmas, I thought I'ed get a few fiber ones done up this year too.

Santa Baby, Slip a little yarn under the tree, for me.

I've been an awful good girl,

Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight.

Santa baby, a ball winder too,

Light blue.

I'll wait up for you dear.

Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight.

Think of all the fun I've missed,

Think of all the silk that I haven't knit,

Next year I could be oh, so good,

If you'd check off my Christmas list,

Boo doo bee doo.

Santa honey, I want Kid Silk too,

And really that's not a lot,

I've been an angel all year,

Santa baby,

and hurry down the chimney tonight.

Santa cutie, there's one thing that I really need,

Some Noro.

To make a bag of my own,

Santa cutie, and hurry down the chimney tonight.

Santa baby, fill my stocking with Knitscene,

And DPN'S.

Size 0 or less,

Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight.

Come and trim my Christmas tree,

With some sock yarn bought at the Sweet Sheep,

I really do believe in you,

Let's see if you believe in me

Boo doo bee doo.

Santa baby, forgot to mention one little thing,

A book.

Called Victorain Lace,

Santa baby, and hurry down the chimney tonight,

Hurry down the chimney tonight,

Hurry down the chimney tonight.

We are the E-E-E-E-Ewoks and We live on the Forest Moon

2006-12-13T08:12:00.000-07:00

I saw this on Crafster, where it's very rare I find some really cute things. To bad the sight is so disorganized! There is probably hundreds of patterns on there I'ed like but can't ever seem to manage to find a way to browse affectively.

Think I can make a couple for Christmas?

Think I should?

EDIT:I should never roll out of bed and post it will only ever end in tears. Or really bad grammer.

2006-12-11T22:20:00.000-07:00

Welcome to the Christmas edition of "Getting to know your friends"
1. Wrapping paper or gift bags? Wrapping papre or something really funky like taking a fairy sculpture, putting it in a clear plastic tub and filling it with gum.

2. Real tree or artificial? Fake, a new one every year, cats sleep in it and I dont want the canines thinking we got doggie indoor plumbing

3. When do you put up the tree? I usually buy all new tree and ornaments in October and want to put it up right a way, so It's up the first weekend in Dec ;>

4. When do you take the tree down? Mom does it, she keeps telling me it's bad luck to have it up more than a week before January. I hate this job it's uncheerful'

5. Do you like eggnog? Nothing good ends in nog, not even snog, it just sounds spitty.

6. Favorite gift received as a child? I think it was a Wrinkles dog, grey that I had wanted for ages. Or the red headed cabbage patch, tho that may have been for my birthday.

7. Do you have a nativity scene? Nope, I can just imagine being damned because Ohbz ate baby Jesus.

8. Hardest person to buy for? Apparently me, everyone says so.

9. Easiest person to buy for? Mum or Dad it alternates with year. Also YB tho with all of the above it's hard to limit myself to one good idea.

10. Worst Christmas gift you ever received? My parents are hearing impaired as evidenced 5 years ago when walking through the Bay I held up a sweater and said isn't this the ugliest thing you have ever seen in my life, only to have them rush in the next day and buy it for me. Or the time I gave my parents a list omplete with sizes and my dad decided since they were out of 7's he'ed geta 2 and a 20 and one of them should fit.

11. Mail or email Christmas cards? Um I buy and fill out Christmas cards but never seem to send them.

12. Favorite Christmas Movie? I likre a load of TV specials but movie, Proabably National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation.

13. When do you start shopping for Christmas? November if I am lucky. I have a lot of birthdays in November so it kinda blends.

14. Have you ever recycled a Christmas present? Yep. I have little guilt about it tho.

15. Favorite thing to eat at Christmas? Cokies and Stuffing, mums stuffing, not like anyone elses.

16. Clear lights or colored on the tree? Depends Someone usually chews them so it goes yearly.

17. Favorite Christmas song? I lik Christmas music in general, but as I work retail I have to say my 2 favourite albums are by Hilary Duff as they aren't all remakes of the same old songs and I love the Brian Setzer Orchestra's album as well.

18. Travel at Christmas or stay home? Home, I don't dejammie if I dont have to.

19. Can you name all of Santa's reindeers? Yep, Dasher Dancer Prancer Vixen Comet Cupid Donner Blitzen and for the record I recall the most famous reindeer of all.

20. Angel on the tree top or a star? Nuthin' It encourages long hikes by the short furries.

21. Open the presents Christmas Eve or morning? We no longer put the presents under the tree until christmas. No one wants to see a handknit sweater peed on or eaten.

22. Most annoying thing about this time of year? Dude, I work retail. Dont even get me started. I think right now I am going to be in a big huge minority and say that I don't like too much religion in my Christmas. I am not athiest or anything, tho I am not a practcing anything either at the moment. I think of this as a holiday to be with my family and celebrate being close to these and all the other people in my life. Maybe this non-religosity effects my point of view but I don't like stores and such bringing religion into the equation. I don't think "away in the Manger" is appropriate to play on Walmart radio. I don't think Hanukkah songs belong either. It would be ok in Mom and Pop stores, but really, in large faceless commercial enties it bugs me a bunch. It could be because I am from a very multicultural neighbourhood where most of my neighbors didn't celebrate Christmas as Christ-mas, or because I don't like the idea of corperations making money of faux piety. Probably a bit of both.

On a presonal note I am almost done shopping, I still have to knit 3 hats and 3 Scarves. I am so fat halfway through scarf #1, and I have to totaloly frog the only hat I have cast on. "It" is going to happen to me again this year.

Good to Know But I don't think it's true.

2006-12-02T23:24:00.000-07:00

Kniting Mojo

2006-11-30T07:49:00.000-07:00

If anyone has seen my knitting mojo please kindly show it the way back home. I've spent the past week sick and on my couch. Or in my Menthol Mausoleaum-Benadril Menthol Plug-ins, if you are stuffy go get some-and NOT knitting. Oh I want to knit, I ahve a ton of knitting books laying around the problem is the fiber doesnt match the patterns, or I'm missing needles. Everything I have OTN is boring me to tears (this is especially true of the Christmas Gifts -Boring stockingette hat, Boring Garter stitch scarf, Even Boring Basic Cable Scarf). What is a mojo-less girl to do but stare at the Rams Wool catalog and marvel at the words Kit and Pattern Included?

Heaven-Sent Secret Pal.

2006-11-26T11:52:00.000-07:00

Hi Secret Pal of infinte seeming patience who is somewhere on the Ocean speaking Italian and eating great food. **waves a lot to be seen** Hi! My co-woprkers say hi! My friends say HI! The postal people say hi! Pretty much if you ever come to town you'll be a wee bit famous. See, how can I put this, i am an enthusiastic kinda girl.

I am very polar. I feel strongly about things so when I got your package, I dragged it along with me for a few days. Going look! Look! See what my secret pal sent me!! Feel this yarn! Look at the yardage on the huge skein there! Smell this! I'ed be grabbing the random old person having geizer coffee in the mall demanding they acknowldge my gifts. Security would come by and they had to too. If they were hesitent or not gushy enough it lead to more stuffing of skeins in faces with exclimations, LOOK at this!, Did you FEEL how soft it is? There needed to be awe. Cuz the package was too cool for school.

Now I have the net and my (freaking) camera at my disposal so I have a potentially limitless audience. Ha! LOOK AT THIS!!!

Now I have to admit the skein of Cherry Hill Bouile Looked way More impressive before I wound it by hand...for 5 hours...straight...only to know my aunt who never knits has a ball winder. Life is unfair. Anyways, I cast on for a shawl but it wasn't working out. I want womething with a less angular design so I came up with this http://www.elann.com/productdisp.asp?NAME=Fiber+Trends+Leaflet+S%2D2008+%2D+Seascape+Shawl&Cat=&ProductType=4&Count=491 The seascape shawl is curvy and the aqua, blues, greens and purples I think should be associated with water. So I have the pattern coming from Elann.

There is great knitpick and regina yarn. Again with my sock gauge so out of wack I am afraid to make socks, but maybe a scarflet or something. It;'s funny I had wanted that exact shade of memories yarn in my basket at KnitPicks! My sp must be a mind reader!! The Regina yarn is in the provincial colours. I am pretty sure that that is the BC colourway. However, looking through mary Maxim...I have to admit my sp could be nova scotian. (the box said bc). Also a hardcover of the happy Hooker. That skirt I have it opened too...I've already started it.

In the non yarn Catagory the happiness continued!! She picked out this puck ( I am too canadian!) of body and hair sparkles. This amazing "lip squeek" that with my cold is sooooo mice on my chapped lips. Instant relief and it smells like apple pie! Which is kinda a sweet torture as it's right under my nose. Seriously if you can find that stuff go hard. There is a bathbomb that will be saved until I can freely use both nostrils. And I don't know how she did it but there is a candel that smells like ROSES AND APPLES!! This is my favourite kinda of scent ever. The only thing I ever found I didn't have to mix myself was cassis rose at the body shop. And there was TWIX! There is no words. And a really cool card. My SP, she has great handwriting.

Above and beyond all I did this more to meet other knitters and I really like my secret pal. She is well spoken and understanding. While I am over the moon at the package she sent I have to say I am just glad I am getting to meet this really cool person.

Jinxsa

Sick days

2006-11-26T11:42:00.000-07:00

To get this out of the way I have started writing a SP post about a week go then I got a cold, this isn't a bad thing, people snuffle and can carry on, however my MOM caught it...and didn't tell me about it...for four days. By then she was so sick I had to half carry her to the hospital. Her diminished white blood cells are fighting pretty good and after only 2 days she's almost herself again -she's not leaving the house today, dispite what she thinks- but she can walk without falling over. Everything in life got pushed back a couple of days. This is the worst thing that has happened since her surgery and as it comes after the last chemo I realize we couldn't have had it any better.

On a personal note the cold has robbed me of my voice. Yesterday was moonlight madness at work and I had to work (they could have done it without me actually but I feel responsible to the place and thus HAD to be there) and my strained voice was efficeint enough for working BUT today it's gone. My throat doesn't hurt much but my vocal cords are so swollen they feel like pool cues. And my voice is gone. Now previously when I have lost my voice, I still spoke. Not this time. I CAN'T. Not at all. This SUCKS. Unless you know me ;>

Stash Issues, me?

2006-11-20T23:20:00.000-07:00

I have been discovering the joys of the internet shopping. I rarely feel the lack of paypal too much of a detriment. (Is there a reason they need my SIN number..um..NO). My First stop was Amazon.ca. I picked up Knitting Nature. I love the complex math that is behind the patterns and somem of the patterns don't appreal to me now , but I am eyeing a bunch with an eye that says I'll probably have them grow on me. The patterns are clear and concise, the writting is intreaguing and thoughtful. One Skein wonders is a good book to have. Quick presents and misc. knitting projectshandy. This is the book that has the most patterns. The calender is ok, the best part was they have a page where you can submit your own patterns for next years. Squee!

Theere was stash purchased oh yes. I got all this in 2 seperate orders from RedBirdKnits.com.

They charged me to wind the ballafter they twice said they would not. This isn't really a big huge scandal from a monitary standpoint, it was a buck, but I really feel let down that I was lied to or mislead on 2 occasions. The product is as stated online and the colours are pretty accurate, the cost is on the low side and shipping prompt. I'ed use them again but I probably wont be recomending them to people I meet in person (like I did last week). The pointy bit, the yarn is from Left to right:

Zephyr
Lightweight and lustrous lace weight (2/18) yarn. Combined merino wool and tussah silk lend elegance, sheen and softness to this wonderful yarn. 1260yds per 115g / 1/4 lb skein. 1 skein is

enough to knit a triangular lacey shawl. For the very finest in lace knitting! In Lady Slipper. I ordereed this first and realize between this and my Icarus all my lace weight was pink.

Merino Lace
Superfine Merino Lace weight (2/18) from Jagger Yarns. 115g skeins of gloriously fine and soft pure merino wool in lace weight. Skeins are 1260yds - 1 will do a full sized triangular shawl or several lacey scarves. Beautiful. Soft! In Deep Purple. Look not pink!

Centolavaggi
Super new lace weight fine merino from the fabulous Filatura di Crosa, Italy. 100% Merino Wool, 100g skeins are 1400m/1530yds - lots to make a gorgeous lacy shawl, scarf, veil or gloves. Machine washable! Soft! Lovely! In Lilac. Oerdered at the same time as Merino. Also picked up another skien for a gift.

Shepherd Sock
Lorna's Laces Shepherd Sock is a beautfully hand dyed mix of 80% superwash wool and 20% nylon (for durability). Fingering or sock weight each skein is 50g and 215yds. 2 skeins make a pair of gorgeous, long lasting socks. This is the Jester colourway. I orered this with the Zephyr. I am too scared to cast on as my sock guage is HUGE! Plus I can now say I own some Lorna's Laces. I feel like such a grown up little blogger.

Caution: Do not Feed Blogger

2006-11-20T22:26:00.000-07:00

Blogspot has eaten no less than 3 of my post today. I am unamused. Painfully so.

SP-my dear, I have recieved thine very awesome package after less than awesome postal service, (dont ask). There are even pictures however Blogger has made them a 3 course meal. There will be another attempt to show the 'Verse How very wonderful you have been to me when I am less likely to try to kill the entire internet. I didn't think you had access to the net so I figured a day's delay wouldn't be too bad. Sorry to worry you.

Thank You

This has been a public service annoucement. Had this been a real emergency we would have said screw you and took off without notifying you.

WIP'd

2006-11-20T09:40:00.000-07:00

I usually have, well a lot on the needles. It suits me. I want to knit, I want to feel the potential of each and every project I start, I want a challange. After I get those things I, um, move on ..a bit.. Why, with my attention span, do i not consider FINISHING a project to be a challange? Let's face facts with my stunning lack ability to concentrate for more than 5 minutes it would be a challange. These are the long awaited photos of the WIP in ...well, current rotation. (Also please consider the near miracle that my camera and I were at the same place at the same time for the first time in months.)

Pattern: Lace Edged Coat
From: Knitscene 05
Yarn: Patons Classic Merino in Harvest
Completed: Back and most of a front (shown) and there should be another front kicking around here somewhere or I am going to be uber short on yarn!

Thoughts: I needed 3 not 2 strands held together I think. It's knitting bigger than I thoughton the other hand so a bit of felting should get the fabric a little tighter. So far it's BO-RING. Garter stitch, all of it. Yawnsville. The redeeming feature it's on really big needles. So it theoretically goes way faster. There has been some pooling issues but I am ok with it for the most part. I plan on making the matching skirt, but that one will have to be 3 stands for sure.

The big feature of it is the crochet trim. I am going to have to use another dyelot for the trim but I can live with that. I really can't wait to get to it.
Want to see what it's supposed to look like check it out here: http://www.knitscene.com/photos/project14.asp

Pattern:Trellis Scarf
From:Sprin 06 Interweave Knits
Yarn: Brushed Suri From Blue Sky Alpacha in Earl Grey
Completed:not a hell of a lot

Thoughts:I decided since the yarn had the word Alpacha in it, it'ed be a substitue for the recomended yarn (Knit Picks Alpaca Cloud (100% baby alpaca; 440 yd [402 m]/50 g): #C82 smoke, 1 skein.) For the record I am trying to replace a lace weight with across between DK and Worsted.Surprising to no one with any knitting sense at all. I am having difficulties, especially since I kept the recommended needle size. This was going to be a gift, I like it a lot but knitting 7 together is damn near impossble. So off to something a little easier if I am to have a hope and/or prayer of finishing it for Christmas.
It's brushed to so I think I wont even beable to reclaim the yarn. **sob**
to compare look here:
http://www.interweave.com/knit/interweave_knits/preview/2006_spring.asp

Pattern: Icarus Shawl
From:Summer 06 Interweave Knits
Yarn: Misti Alpacha Lace in Baby Pink
Completed: Am just a few rows away from the mysterious chart 2.

Thoughts: Pray for me kittens, for I amy be deeply, deeply screwed. I bought 2 balls of baby alpacha wool in Calgary. it's 400m a ball. the yarn requirements are as follows :Alpaca Yarn Co. Suri Elegance (100% suri alpaca; 875 yd [800 m]/ 100 g): #3001 Pearl Harbor grey, 1 skein. What they don't tell you is it pretty much takes EXACTLY 800 meters. You have inches left! Inches!! I took off about 2 feet of yarn as I kept fuggling up the cast on, and it got mighty frayed (so did I but thats another story). It's entirely possible I willonly have enough yarn of bind off half! **wimper** If anyone has about 30 feet of Misti Alpaca Lace 2 ply, 100% Baby Alpaca , in Baby Pink (#0524) Dye lot 9006, lemme know!

For the non lace initiated this is a great starting point with some pretty mindless repititions. (Yeah I got a little bored) To ooh and ah at the finished project go to
http://www.interweave.com/knit/interweave_knits/preview/2006_summer.asp

Pattern:Central Park Hoodie
From: Knitscene 06
Yarn: Patons Classic Merino in Leaf Green
Completed: Back and am up to the sleeves on both fronts.

Thoughts:This was the yarn I bought to make the Lace Trim Sweater at the top. I bought enough balls to make the coat and proabably half the trim. (I bought out the dyelot entirely) , the Harvest colour above was to be the matching skirt but things go awry. I took Icarus and knitting to be named later, and I wanted to cast on the Lace Trim Sweater (now to be knows as LTS)but I had the wrong sized needles. I thus used the yarn handy and cast on the Central Park Hoodie, because I can't NOT knit. I got past the considerable ribbing that night and there was no going back. Maybe if i hadn't finished the ribbing I would have ripped back and done up all the projects as I planned (Central Park was supposed to be Pink!) But I didn't and I guess I have to live with that now, don't I? It's a pretty basic sweater, While working on the fronts I got bored. I will finish this sweater though. It's to basic not to.

View Here:http://www.knitscene.com/photos/2006/project13.asp

OMFG I just went to look for the photo and I saw a link for corrections. Under “Left Front”
Row 2 (WS) *K2, p2; rep from * to end of row.
Under “Hood”
Dec row (RS) Work to 3 sts before m, k2tog, k1, sl m, k1, ssk, work to end.
Guess what I did. Pardon Me I need to cry and eat some chocolate. Possibly garrot myself with the circs.

Pattern:Poma-whatsis
From: Knitty Winter O5
Yarn: Trekking XXL
Completed:1 Cuff and chart 1

Thoughts: This sock is in semi-permident detention, through no fault of it's own. I can't get my printer and PC to talk to each other. While I was willing to do Chart 1 By hand, the rest, not so much. Also while taking this picture I realized this is huge!. My guage on socks is massive. I wonce cast on a sock in the same weight and needlesize only to end up with a hat! Any advice on sock guage is welcome. Gads.

I have come to the comclusion I almost always cast on projects everyone else is doing. I'm a sheep, which all things consitered isn't a baaaa-d (sorry) thing for a knitter to be, beats a lemming by a mile. Still this is most of the current rotation. There are a few Christmas Gifts and secret pal stuff on and off needles I can't blog about yet. But I blogged and that is something, right?

Rambling Friday Update

2006-11-17T07:56:00.000-07:00

exhaustion is not my friend. i got so tired yesterday that i can't remember it. i know i left work early (by about an hour) and that my head hurt so bad i couldn't keep advil down until i slept a bit. someone please explain to me how i don't qualify for stress leave under Canadian ei laws? Would i really leave work if by some miracle i did qualify?
i hate Canada post, there is more yarn en route to my house than is safe to admit (i think that moths are hacking the internet as you read this, i order from many sources just to be on the safe side) and honestly with the cold snap i think the postal employees are stuffing it under their coats and the like to keep warm. Like it's my fault they decided to wear short in November!! Throw that and the fact it was a holiday for them Monday and yeah, am getting very anxious to get my hands on my yarn. If you are looking for good Canadian sites to order from there will be a list on the bottom of the page.
my secret pal package is still enroute as well, i can say this without fear of giving my upstream secret pal heart attacks as she is off on vacation, having fabulous food and speaking Italian. Am jealous except for i have no idea how to speak Italian, this includes ordering food.
my second package to my down stream pal is ready except for the fact that the yarn is in transit. Mom goes to Calgary for a radiation assessment in the beginning of December. There is a yarn store about 4 blocks away. i want instant gratification!
i bought a schwak of books from amazon.ca, (which now that i think of it i ordered after yarn proving my mail carrier/shorts theory) I got a pattern a day calendar, which is less than 352 patters as they squish sat and Sunday together and some patterns take more than a days worth of paper. i feel a bit jipped but all and all it was a good purchase. i picked up one skein wonders-i am kinda meh on it, i don't have enough lone skeins yet to do much with it but if i ever finish a project i will ;>. And i picked up knitting nature. There are 2 patterns out of the whole book that made me just go wow i must make that but the concept is really interesting, and the mathy/science behind the patterns is going to probably just enthrall him.
i am buying red clothing. Not a lot but a little. It doesn't look like Christmas out in the world hardly at all and i am really feeling Christmas-y. (for the Christmas squeamish do not look at my ipod). i still own very little primary coloured yarn by choice as i don't think i could take red, yellow or bright primary blue for a long stretch (teal and aqua, we can talk). ((yes yb it is primaries i don't like, i do like pastels.))
i want to see the next bond movie. It seems to have more of a sense of play then some of the others. Happy feet opens today as well, i just want to know what its about.
Jericho is a show every single knitter in the world should watch. If anyone complains about your stash just point at the TV and say as hysterically as possible, look tomorrow i may not be able to buy more. I'll be the only one who can make clothes for the winter!

since i know you are all breathlessly waiting for it here is my list of great Canadian yarn retailers here they are:

http://www.redbirdknits.com/ this is a really good vendor. Got one of my packages promptly, still waiting for the other but i ordered only a short time ago. She will wind one ball for you, maybe two before charging $1 a ball. She also answers all her e-mail personally and the response time is pretty good on weekends and great on weekdays. They carry mainly sock weights and lace weights

http://www.thesweetsheep.com/xcart/home.php again i ordered 2 packages from them and sadly neither has arrived. But they are very helpful and promt giving answers and replies. Again a heavy focus on lace weight and socks, but there are some pretty cool inexpensive aran/worsted weights. They have a wish list feature i really like and they are willing to wind balls (sensing a theme?)

http://theknittery.com/ ok i admit it this is Australian but i love them none the less. i am willing to order from there because when you convert money it's in my favour and there is no duty to pay on the goods! They have gorgeous yarns all done up by them, and great service. They will also wind balls for free if you ask. Sadly no wish list but for the record i am in love with their grace colourway. squee.

http://www.elann.com/frames.asp it's a staple. i haven't ordered anything from them recently but they have a few new yarns i must have so i will be ordering from them again soon.

http://www.ramswool.com/ dudes. This place is HUGE. i found them after the cc ran out. Naturally. This is the Canadian version of webs! I must order from this place if only to get their catalog. Also it's nice to see some heavier weights for those of us who don't want to knit arans from sock yarn (i say with love). When i order from here I'll let you know how it goes.

ttfn hopefully i have yarn porn to show you tomorrow.

Ranting Retailer

2006-11-03T21:21:00.000-07:00

Life has been making me a little more time contrained than usual. All non work hours are being devoted to parental supervision and will result in my strangling someone soon. Guess who...

Work has been a bit more of a ...challange...than I personally appreciate. There was a mighty dumping of 40+ boxes in 2 days, right after we re-did the whole store. We were given a list of items that would not be in for 2 weeks so we could alter our plans accordingly, unfortunately, H/O lied. And after tearing apart work on the weekend, I had to do it again Tuesday. There were words said, and yes they were migh-T hostile and more than marginally unflattering. It triggered the e-mail heared around the counrty and here's hoping it gets my ass fired. ;> It will probably enspire a blog about ranting about retail. Yep people,a s you go out and begin your holiday shopping, some of those cheerful grins are actually a little clenched, and those big huge desks between you and us are there so we don't cause bodily injury when the shoppers get stupid.

Question: Why do so many people forget that we are employees not servants? We are there to help you make your purchace and make sure you are happy about it. You forget please and thank you I may forget your foot is not the best place to drop my stock box. Common curtesy is sadly not as common as one would hope.

That said WCB is taking care of my claim, and I found out that I have had so many reports I have my own case worker, I think she helps other people too, but all mine go to her. That bee sting I got while working made me famous. The knitting finger incident was just a clincher. My former boss was pretty much a "you report everything" kinda person and that has influenced me greatly, tho it does cause a great deal of paperwork when your as accident prone as I am. I am the only person I know that works in a mall, that has gotten stung by a bee in the line of duty. I am so accident prone I have become a band-aid snob!

A sample of the e-mail heard around the world. "If you send me so much stock I can no longer see the backroom door you cannot complain when I hang my coat and hat on a slow moving customer."

Up Next On Fox: "When Startitis attacks!"

2006-10-14T12:33:00.000-06:00

Dudes. There are no words at all. I have cast on more projects than I can name off hand. I started fingerless mitts for myself as it's starting to get cold out and every morning I am wishing I had a pair. I started the Central Park Hoodie because I thinkI may be able to wear it to work, at least once, plus I need a self knitted sweater. I cast on a hat for my secret pal, because she said she wanted one-and I finished it too. Please note the pathetic attempts at justifying myself here. This is in attempt to get the half completed Icarus to stop looking at me with those big puppy dog/alpaca eyes.

There will be photos but in the height of irony I have actually misplaced the camera. Dont you love it when irony gets ironic?

There Has Been Knitting

2006-10-12T23:40:00.000-06:00

I am completely exhausted. Anyone who knows anything about my life is fainting from not surprise at this pronouncement. Still work is being annoying on a level I can hardly believe. 19 days of work in a row. Now I will fully admit there are days I am there for 10-15 mins. But it takes at least 2 hours out of my life to be there those 10-15 mins. and I am quite thoroughly sick of it. I am not sure what I need to do about it but the situation will be changing - either I work things out where I can have a life or I collapse, either way = time off.

I got a call about my biopsy results and they are saying they came back high grade pre cancerous cells. Initial tests support that they removed all the damaged tissue. Originally it was going to be Dec before I was going to find the results so was a bit of a shock to get them yesterday. Especially @ 7pm. I am undecided if I am going to pursue further treatment. I am thinking about it but even if I go for 3 chemos it'll overlap with mum's radiation and I don't think that will work out at all. They aren't recomending any further treatment either but I will have a second test in December so I guess everything will be arranged then.

This week has seen a boom in knitting related activities. There is a scarf in progress (boring garter stitch with shaped floral crochet trim), I have almost completed the back of my Central Park Hoodie, Icarus is at a standstill but I think I'll be taking it to work tomorrow, and today I knit a hat. There will be pictures when I can find my camera. It's in my purse actually but my purse is really far and I don't want to admit I am to tired/lazy to go get it, thus the camera is "lost") It is socktober...i have no socks on the needles...I have sock yarn and patterns stratigically placed, items I have been dying to make, but the socks, they ain't happening. **SIGH** I should really start my gift knitting. Of course this will involve planning gift items and yarn purchases. Right now everything I have on the needles is for myself or my secret pal. I may restrict my gift knitting this year to 6 hats and 20 dishclothes, or something. I will be making another batch of my extra moisturizing soap, some homemade milk bath and I think I will be branching out into cookies this year too. I may crochet some scallop scarves for the girls at work too. Again if I have to go with mum and dad to Calgary and stay at the hospital 5 days a week, there will probably be knitting.

It amazes me how little knitting I actually seemed tohave done the past few weeks, or months. I think my shoulders have been buring the past few days because I am no longer used to knitting and I have been doing some pretty marathomn sessions. Please note the achey, burny feeling is slowing me down but not even coming close to stopping the knitting being done. I think I just need to build up my knitting muscles again. Dude, i'm gunna be buff.

Oh extra happy bonus points, I got my secret pal stuff all bought for this round, need to knit , and pack it up. As usual I over bought, so I have to decided what to do. I spent so much on the stuff I only have a certain amount in the budget for shipping, so I have to either return a few things or hold them for the next package. Next time I need to pick out some lighter things. Can you ship helium by Canada Post?

Secret Pal extra questionaire.

2006-10-06T23:07:00.000-06:00

The Yarn Yenta had this posted at her blog. Thought I'ed play along too.

http://javajem.blogspot.com/2006/10/get-to-know-you-questions.html#links

1. Where is your favorite knitting spot?
actually it's on a bus or in the back room of the store where I work. I din't know why they just are. I think I need to take another trip on a Greyhound cross country, maybe I'ed actually finish a project.

2. If you suddenly could never knit again (shudder) - what would you do instead?
Crochet, or maybe I'ed pick up a book and actually read again.

3. If you could travel anywhere in the world - where would you go and why?
This really changes on my mood. Sometime the whole backpacking through Europe thing seems what I want or a trip to Austrailia. Really I decided I'ed love to take a trip to Montreal. But it'ed depend who I went with. I don;t think I'ed enjoy it on my own as much.

4. When you were little - What did you want to do "when you grew up?" Are you doing it?
I wanted to be a cat....not so much, but more than you'ed expect.

5. What is your favorite flavor of ice cream?
Vanilla or ben and Jerry's half baked.

Secret Pal 9

2006-10-02T08:15:00.000-06:00

Am I insane with everything going on I am participating in Secret Pal 9?1 Why yes, yes I am ;>

1. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with? What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?

i am turning into a bit of a yarn snob i guess but without a proper lys in town not too much, i wil knit with anything that isn't ribbon or ladder yarn. if it squeeks while being knit i'm not going to use it

2. What do you use to store your needles/hooks in?

I have a case for my circs and I have a wine bottle box for my straights. dpns and accesories are in a little knitting bag

3. How long have you been knitting & how did you learn?

1 year, 1 month and 27 days and about 20 hours...
from a book my mom tried to show me but that didn't workout so well

Would you consider your skill level to be beginner, intermediate or advanced?

advanced except i can't do multi coloured knitting

4. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?

amazon.ca

5. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products, etc.)

roses
apples (roses mixed with apples)
cookies

6. Do you have a sweet tooth? Favorite candy?

i do have a sweet tooth, i love laura secort mint chocolate bars 9not the green one but the solid milk ones ...yum)
right now i am so hooked on twix i should be dying of malnutrition

7. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do? Do you spin?

i don't spin, i can cross stitch but don't very much, I can bead but pretty much just make stitch markers, i sew but just beginners stuff
did i mention crochet? i like to do that too
i make soap

8. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)

i like classical music thats been remixed- think the diva song from "fifth element"
i have mp3 players

9. What's your favorite color(s)? Any colors you just can't stand?

i like brights! my favourite colours are all the secondary colours (including pink), i never wear primary colours (excpet for one pair of rusty red socks I am making)

10. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?

i live with my parents, my father is in a wheelchair, my mum has breast cancer so it's probably a good thing i am home
there are 4 cats and 2 dogs living here and apparently wanting attention all at the same time

11. Do you wear scarves, hats, mittens or ponchos?

i love the idea of a ponch i don't know if i'ed wear one, i thinki would but then i think i'ed be self conconcious
i live in canada and walk 20-30 mins to and from work 5 days a week (minimum) yes i ear hats, gloves and scarves, i also love fashion/indoor scarves

12. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?

i am attracted to almost ever skirt pattern ever

13. What are you knitting right now?

2 skirts, a dress, a shawl, socks, soul sucking garther stitch scarf, crocheting 3 hats and ablanket and there are probably more ufo's i can think about

14. Do you like to receive handmade gifts?

15. Do you prefer straight or circular needles? Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?

straights and metal

16. Do you own a yarn winder and/or swift?

no *sniff*

17. How old is your oldest UFO?

1 year, 19 days and 20 hours ... actually about 9 months

18. What is your favorite holiday?

anything that gets me time off work. a few years ago it would have been christmas but i work retail and it's busy

19. Is there anything that you collect?

movies and dvd box sets
yarn
dust...?

20. Any books, yarns, needles or patterns out there you are dying to get your hands on? What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?

rowan magazine looks really cool, the newest issue has a pattern for a dress that looks squee
rebecca magazine isn't available here either
i collect knit simple, interweave knits, vouge knitting, sometimes i'll pick up a creative knitting but some of thier stuff is really scary bland/unflattering (sorry), i usually buy 2 copies of knit.1 because i lug it around everywhere, and interweave crochet, crochet! and looking back i wonder howmany trees i kill a month, still you can't say i am uninformed.

21. Are there any new techniques you'd like to learn?

multi coloured knitting, there is just something about it that doesn't click with me, oh and illusion knitting

22. Are you a sock knitter? What are your foot measurements?

i am a left sock knitter, i never get around to the right it seems ;> (or is it the other way around?)
i wear a size 8 shoe

23. When is your birthday? (mm/dd)

august 10

Hee.

2006-09-18T08:00:00.000-06:00

Well the trip to Calgary is tomorrow (eep.) and it's down to the wire for the sweater. I had a brief daliance with a granny square. The possibility that I won't go to Calgary in a handknit was too awful to contemplate so I knit a purse last Thursday. I'll have to line it but that won't take to long (yeah right) I'll have plenty of time to finish the sleeves to the mesh sweater. Well here are pic of the purse modelled by my infamous mum and my dad.

This is the first picture that has been taken of my dad in YEARS (i think it runs int he family) and I can just imagine if he goes missing ... well people would be looking for him;>

2006-09-07T22:21:00.000-06:00

Dude! I got some serious haul! Check out my gifts! All purple and all mine. Too bad you can't transmit smell or touch. I got this Bamboo White Tea Body scrub, seriously, so sweet and floral and girly girly. Soft purple lace weights with pattern and a cable scarf that took me about 5 mins to puzzle out how the heck she got the scalloped edge (duh). My pal was the sweet and charming Cindiluhu, who may be net stalking me as we are in about, what?, 5 or 10 of the same knit communities? Was totally on the wrong track as to who she was! Thanks Cindi!!

A meme I picked up but I forget where

2006-09-02T09:21:00.000-06:00

1. What's your worst habit relating to your knitting?
spending so much money on yarn, yet i never seem to have enough

2. In what specific ways does your knitting make you a better person?
i'm calmer and hapier

3. How might you or your life be different if you were suddenly unable to knit?
dude, i'ed sue the world, not able to knit you know i'ed be up on that belltower

4. If money were no object, what one yarn, and what one tool or gadget would you run out and buy first?
swift and ballwinder

5. What knitting technique or project type are you most afraid of (if any)? What, specifically, do you fear will happen when you try it?
i can't do multicolour knitting, i don't fear it i am just not good at it, i fear entrelac because i think that i'eed get so pissed off with those fuzzy little triangles that i would take a blow torch to it, and that would waste good wool

6. Who is/are your knitting hero(es), and why?
i think my grandma because she kept 3 daughtres, 3 sons-in-law and 6 grandkids in handknits

7. Do you consider knitting, for you personally, a mostly social activity, or a mostly solitary activity?
it's solitary by default if i meet a knitter ( which seem to be rare here) we'll talk each others ear offunkless they are knitting then i'll think my stuff is crap and slink off in silence.

8. Is there a particular regional tradition in knitting that you feel strongly drawn toward (e.g., Fair Isle, Scandinavian, Celtic, Orenburg lace)? Any theories as to why it calls to you?
not really I love lace and aran style patterns tho

9. If you were a yarn, which yarn would you be?
i think i took this quiz once. i was cashmere, due to the fact that i am high maintenece

10. Some statistics:(a) How many years have passed since you FIRST learned to knit?
1 year, 1 month 26 days annndddd.....20 hours
(b) How many total years have you been actively, regularly knitting (i.e., they don't have to have been in a row)?
probably a few days more than that I learned a few times but my stitches were so tight

(c) how many people have you taught to knit?
Three.
(d) Roughly what percentage of your FOs do you give away (to anyone besides yourself, i.e., including your immediate family)
fo-what are those, not many except at chirstmas, of course i usually only finish those so about 90" but almost all my progects are cast on for me
11. How often do you KIP (knit in public)? i.e., once a week, once a month, etc. Where do you do it?
all the time, in line at the bank or walmart, i probably would say 10 times a week

12. If a genie granted you one hour to stitch-n-bitch with any one knitter, living or dead, who would you choose and why?
no-one by the time i stopped being totally intimidated it'ed be over

13. What aspect or task in knitting makes you most impatient
garter stitcha dn blocking

14. What is it about knitting that never lets you get bored with it?
my mistakes!

15.Tools
...am i being insulted here....
i prefer srtaights to circulars, metal to anything

16. Which one person is the recipient of more of your knitting than any other?
my mum who is a size 2/3 it takes about 4 hours to knit the entire back of a cardigan for her.

17. What's the oddest thing about your knitting, or yourself as a knitter?
i've stuck with it this long, normally i stay with it about 3 weeks or until i have spent gobs of money (whichever comes first) but i know i will still be knitting come the end of the week and thats really unusual for me

18. What do you see yourself knitting - if anything - twenty years from now
aran sweaters and fair isle skirts

19. If you were stranded on a deserted island and could have only ONE SKEIN of yarn, which yarn would it be and what would you do with it?
i'ed horde the skien and learn to knit grass

20. If you were allowed to own only one knitting-related book, which would it be? (you'd be free to browse others, but you couldn't keep them)?
the biggest one i could find, something that had stitch patterns and how to make/shape garment instructions

21. Is knitting the new yoga? Why or why not?
it must be i haevn't killed anyone yet, and in my life that's saying something

How Boring am I?- not as bad as I thought

2006-08-24T07:56:00.000-06:00

1. Bought everyone in the bar a drink
02. Swam with wild dolphins
03. Climbed a mountain
04. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
05. Been inside the Great Pyramid
06. Held a tarantula
07. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
08. Said 'I love you' and meant it
09. Hugged a tree
10. Bungee jumped
11. Visited Paris
12. Watched a lightning storm at sea
13. Stayed up all night long and saw the sun rise
14. Seen the Northern Lights
15. Gone to a huge sports game
16. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa-nope but I did walk up the stairs to the CN Tower, there are alot of stairs
17. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
18. Touched an iceberg
19. Slept under the stars
20. Changed a baby's diaper
21. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
22. Watched a meteor shower
23. Gotten drunk on champagne
24. Given more than you can afford to charity
25. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
26. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
27. Had a food fight
28. Bet on a winning horse
29. Asked out a stranger
30. Had a snowball fight
31. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
32. Held a lamb
33. Seen a total eclipse
34. Ridden a roller coaster
35. Hit a home run
36. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
37. Adopted an accent for an entire day
38. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
39. Had two hard drives for your computer
40. Visited all (50 states) The provinces and territories
41. Taken care of someone who was drunk
42. Had amazing friends
43. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
44. Watched wild whales
45. Stolen a sign
46. Backpacked in Europe
47. Taken a road-trip
48. Gone rock climbing
49. Midnight walk on the beach
0. Gone sky diving
51. Visited Ireland
52. Been heartbroken longer then you were actually in love
53. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
54. Visited Japan
55. Milked a cow
56. Alphabetized your cd's
57. Pretended to be a superhero
58. Sung karaoke
59. Lounged around in bed all day
60. Posed nude in front of strangers
61. Gone scuba diving
62. Kissed in the rain
63. Played in the mud
64. Played in the rain
65. Gone to a drive-in theater
66. Visited the Great Wall of China
67. Started a business
68. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
69. Toured ancient sites
70. Taken a martial arts class
71. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight
72. Gotten married
73. Been in a movie
74. Crashed a party
75. Gotten divorced
76. Gone without food for 5 days
77. Made cookies from scratch
78. Won first prize in a costume contest
79. Ridden a gondola in Venice
80. Gotten a tattoo
81. Rafted the Snake River
82. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
83. Got flowers for no reason
84. Performed on stage
85. Been to Las Vegas
86. Recorded music
87. Eaten shark
88. Had a one-night stand
89. Gone to Thailand
90. Bought a house
91. Been in a combat zone
92. Buried one of your parents
93. Been on a cruise ship
94. Spoken more than one language fluently
95. Performed in Rocky Horror.
96. Raised children
97. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
98. Created and named your own constellation of stars
99. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
100. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
101. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
102. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
103. Had plastic surgery
104. Survived an illness that you shouldn't have survived
105. Wrote articles for a large publication
106. Lost over 100 pounds
107. Held someone while they were having a flashback
108. Piloted an airplane
109. Petted a stingray
110. Broken someone's heart
111. Helped an animal give birth
112. Won money on a T.V. game show
113. Broken a bone
114. Gone on an African photo safari
115. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
116. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
117. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
118. Ridden a horse
119. Had major surgery
120. Had a snake as a pet
121. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
122. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
123. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
124. Visited all 7 continents
125. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
126. Eaten kangaroo meat
127. Eaten sushi
128. Had your picture in the newspaper
129. Changed someone's mind about something you caredeeply about
130. Gone back to school
131. Parasailed
132. Petted a cockroach
133. Eaten fried green tomatoes
134. Read The Iliad - and the Odyssey
135. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
136. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
137. Skipped all your school reunions
138. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
139. Been elected to public office
140. Written your own computer language
141. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream (every day)
142. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
143. Built your own PC from parts
144. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
145. Had a booth at a street fair
146: Dyed your hair
147: Been a DJ
148: Shaved your head
149: Caused a car accident
150: Saved someone's life

Pondering and Nuances

2006-08-11T12:35:00.000-06:00

I was about to title this reflections on being 29. I have been 29 for an entire day now and I think I have found the Knack of it. Well I can achieve the state of being easy enough for another 365 days anyways. However having had a cup of coffee and a big slice of double frosting cake this morning I dare say I am to hyper for anything so indepth as "reflecting". What I can achieve on my stimulant induced speeding is at best a "Secrets about Me you never Knew, and possibly never wanted too".

I hate wearing sleeves which is a problem as I work in a clothing store and the dress code is that you must wear current season clothes from the store, this is not always a good thing as I don't like wearing primary colours so sometimes pickings are slim. This season there are some gorgeous greens and this warm spicy carrot colour and browns with hardly any ucky colours in site. Now if only they didn't make everything long sleeved ... **breaks out the generation t book**
I am much more crafty than my blog shows mainly because my camera sucks way too much battery power, but I am a very crafty person **goes and knits herself a mustache so she can twirl it**
I secretly am wishing there was a laundry faery so I wouldn't have to do it.
my sewing machine and I are back on speaking terms now that we have replaced all the bobbins.
my knitting machine and I still aren't are speaking terms
I am planning on crocheting 12 scarves and knitting 8 more for Christmas, in addition to making 4 pullovers and 2 cardigans, and a doll, and about 4 pairs of mousie mittens, 2 hats...and....(there's more but I think I need to lie down for a bit.) and I actually think I'll be able to get it done.
I still think about what I want to be when I grow up (audiologist or the like)
I make fun of peoples clothes although I usually restrict it to magazines or people who wear really bad bras or slim leg pants on people with any amount of hips.
I want to cross stitch something but I think I actually just want to shop for cross stitch stuff
shopping is my anti-depressant, which is a vicious circle everytime the mastercard bill comes in
I can't spell vicious without help and it still doesn't look right to me
I want to go to Montreal just so I can brush up my french
If I find a good yarn sale online I don't tell anyone until I have bought what I want for myself, then I'll tell anyone who will listen

Also as I realized I sounded like I was whining yesterday and I probably was, I just like to point out that I never considered myself someone who could deal with problems and stress and I was the last person anyone would want with them in a crisis but what the last 2 months have thought me is I honestly don't have to be. When I start going though a rough time I just have to keep putting one foot in front of the other because that's the only way to get out the otherside, isn't it?

Also Happy Belated Birthday Jo!! Hope yours had as much frosting as mine!!

Happy Birthday to Me!

2006-08-10T07:47:00.000-06:00

Well today it is My b-day. yeay. This year I get a cake. Apparenly to convince my parents to get me a cake I have to gIve up all forms of life to take care of them 24/7. Am a bad person to complain about the impossibly high bar they set just to recieved baked goods on the anniversary of my birth?

Mom is doing well right now the first chemo is under our communal belts and she isn't really feeling tired or anything. Dad is , um...well he's complaining less than usual. My surgury has been booked and there is now forward motion which is keeping me complacent. I'm heading back to work 15 hours a week until September. No manager would be a bad thing so am full-time until they get somone bossier than me. Or Mom's Birthday in the middle of October which ever comes first. It'll be nice to have a paycheck and be able to pay off some of the bills that are accumulating, I miss seeing them and talking to the girls all the time, I want money -did i mention that?- and really it's not a bad place to work at all. However it totally takes away my knitting time. I have an aran calf length skirt to finish before September. I mean how inconsiderate is that huh?

So the things I asked for a swift, a ball winder, huge list of books and yarn. I got a video i-pod. Dad understands electronics. I'm not complaining it's just really funny in it's predictableness. I got sock yarn from 2 of my friends (socks!!) however I left it at thier house so I won't see it again until SATURDAY (!) and am going to make Pompotamus out of it. And am going to my fave restaurant tomorrow. The YB asked if I wanted a party today, dudes this is the first birthday party I've had since the one at McDonalds, I always go out and see everyone but my freinds were always the individual sort.

So yeah today is my 29th b-day. Now id you'll excuse me I have to go pick up my own cake.

Colour Swap questions

2006-07-24T09:24:00.000-06:00

1. What are your top three favorite colours? I hear purple. Lilac to a deep royal purple. I wear almost any colour that isn't a primary. I'm just odd that way. Pink and Teal have become part of my life. I am at home for 2 moths taking care of my father (he's had 4 strokes) and my mother has breast cancer. Myself I have been diagnosed with, it's not cervical cancer but it's the step right below it. So pink and teal have become pretty symbolic around here... But I still love Purple.

2. What crafts do you really enjoy? Knitting. I crochet a wee little bit. Did I mention knitting? I am not much else for crafts. I did some wire and beading but it's not practical for me , 4 cats someone is pound to think, "Oh shiny thing, I should bat it around, or swallow it." I still make stitch markers, but that's the extent. I have gotten a sewing machine and I am in desperate need of lessons so I can start making some of the clothes I have bought fabrics for. To wear with my knitting.

3. What products do you really covet? I miss living in Toronto with all the shopping close at hand. That's not a product just I know me and I'ed have everything by now. ;> Sock yarn and lace weight. Neither are available in town at all.

4. What other activities do you enjoy besides your favorite crafty things? I hike sometimes, I do the video game thing (my cat is addicted to FFX, so funny) I pretty much don't have hobbies, I go out and do things, anything, with friends who make it fun.

5. Is there anything you collect? I am an on again off again comic book collector. I have started collecting them online. I have this horrible urge to buy everything that has Happy Bunny on it or Rachel Hale's cat and puppy pictures.

6. What is your zodiac sign and/or Chinese zodiac symbol? I am a Leo. And a snake...Scary, scarier than rabbits even. Yup scared by rabbits. They are cute and stuff I just can't pick one up.

7.What are your favorite -Scents/smells? Roses, fruit (not so much citrus)
- types of music and/or bandTechnohno opera, movie soundtracks
- authors? tanya huff. Great Canadian author, does fantasy sci-fi. Brilliant. I am also addicted to some booksLunaluna publishers a fantasy publisher run by harlequin (wasmuchyuch happier before I knew that) good stories and very femalecentric
- animals? Cats cats, dogs, I want a hedgehog, sheep, llamas
- places to shop? gah I miss living in a big city where there was variety. Of the stores here you may have heard of I like Smart Set, Old Navy and I love le Chateau but who are they kidding with those prices?
- season? Winter, I hate being hot, so bad
- yarn/fabric/paper/other craft supplies? well with yarn it's faster to say what I don't like I'm not a fan of ribbon /ladder yarns. I am really bad at multi colour knI'llng, i'll tackle it yet, so right now I am really enjoying complex one colour knitting like an like knitting an aran and I'm experimenting with felting. I prefer straight to circular, metal to the bamboo. I love rosewood but terrified I'll break 'em.
- candies or Minties? mint chocolate but that would just be a pretty big puddle right now.

8. Do you have any wish lists? I have one at amazon.ca but it's not very accurate as I put "reminders" of other people's want lists on it.

9. Are you allergic to anything? Anylaundry detergent not tide , wool wash is ok.

10. Do you have any pets? 4 cats,2 dogs. I am planning to finish a post about them. I have a collie who is mine, a mini schnauzer that is my mom's . 4 cats, Mr Muffin (Muffy), OB1 (ohbz) and My 2 cats Sam and Spooky (Spam and Spoo)

Photos

2006-07-22T18:40:00.000-06:00

photos for previous post:

2006-07-21T09:15:00.000-06:00

A Knitter with too much time on her hands is Dangerous
Well if I ever get around to blocking it I'll show you my finished Hiking scarf. Not a fan of blocking its too reminiscent of my arch-nemesis laundry. Not to mention I block on the floor and pins need to be counted very carefully , ask me how I know.

My next projects were to be a fall sweater, and a few lacey scarves to get a jump on Christmas, but my yarn hasn't yet arrived. So I decided to work on my next fall/winter piece. An Aran skirt. Ok I first saw this pattern after I had only knit for 3 Months and I fell in love with it. It was white (it makes me look tall), it was a sweater style (so 80's but one of the few good fashions that came from the 80's), An Aran (the pinnacle of one colour knitting, in my opinion) and it was freaking HARD. Experienced level in vogue magazine. I put the magazine down and backed away slowly.

Well it's been about 11 months since I started knitting. I pretty much suck at anything with more than one colour (except simple stripes) but I have pretty much decided that nothing in knitting will actually kill me. It may frustrate me for a while but the odds of it actually doing me in are pretty minimal, not impossible as I think this project was trying it's hardest to make sure I didn't survive the experience. When approaching something with a chart that looks like this, don't look at it all at once. You get vertigo and nausea, instead break it down. Knit? Purl? You can do those. Cable left or cable right? You can do those too, now. You may also notice bobbles. I don't know how but I missed those before. I think the skirt was using cover-up or something, I discovered that I had to do them while waiting in the dr's office, it was to be about a half hour wait and I hadn't brought back-up knitting. Bobbles for the record are dead easy just kinda annoying. (Put right needle into next stitch as if you knit, K1, p1, k1, p1, k1 all into that stitch without slipping the stitch off your left needle until the last knit is in. Turn. K5. Turn. P1, P3tog, P1. Turn. Slip stitch knitwise, Ktog, PSSO. At this point I turn one last time and knit the same stitch before I carry on. I was finding the initial stitch was so stretched out it was leaving a bit of a hole under the bobble.) And short rows, dead useful when you go to make your first pair of socks.

It's actually very basic, like all knitting is, once you break the bits up small enough. I say this now after casting on 8 times. Possibly more. First time I knit the tail into the project, duh. The second time I put too many stitches on. Third time? I put to little. I decided that after the first row the cast on wasn't springy enough. The fourth time, I chose a cast on that was springy and realized that the skirt was knit sideways and the cast on would be a seam. The long tail cast on seemed to make a better seam that the other fancy one. Blah blah blah, and so on and so on. I made every mistake possible. The worst was getting three rows in and realizing I started reading the chart from the wrong corner. That was the second last cast on. I am doing pretty well now that I have gotten to the short rows. This should keep my entertained for a while.

I am using acrylic yarn. Before everyone thinks sacrilege I'ed like to point out the thought process. I need something machine wash and dry. I take care of 2 infirm parents and have a full time job. I need something easy. I was also really really really paranoid about what has charmingly been called butt pooch syndrome. Wool stretches so if Sitting will cause the butt pooch of doom, I'll just pick something else. Cotton is pretty heavy and would pull on itself. It also stretches out pretty easily. Bamboo and other alternative natural fibers are much to costly and would take a long time to arrive. I need something to knit now. So it's acrylic. I'll live. I'll keep you posted here and on my blog as I progress (or not, I tend to have a lot of projects on the go at the same time).

Once again Blogger is going to give me a hard time and not put my pictures in. I'll post them separately.

Meet the family.

2006-07-19T23:27:00.000-06:00

I have a pet thing. Everytime the world goes poopy I get a new animal. Mainly cats. I currently have 2 dogs and 4 cats. I take the blame for the cats the dogs were everyone else's idea.

This is Goldie. She is a purebreed Rough Collie. There were 4 girls in her litter and everyone wanted her, but we got her. If she hadn't come with papers I'ed never believe she was a rough collie. There has to be some border in her. She is the most hyper dog I know. She barks at everything. Collies were bred to herd sheep. Goldie is nto the x-treme version. She herds cats.

This is Orange Blossom The First. He of many names. He is the second oldest cat. He is very hard to describe. He loves dogs. We got him about 3 weeks before we got Goldie. He took to Goldie immediately. (It's an orange thing.) His favourite pasttime is to be dragged around the linolium by his head. before you call the SPCA, the dog did it. I got Ohbz away but yeah the best way to put it is that OB1 is a bit of a painslut. This may be because Bottom over here is the single clumsiest cat in the history of ever. He will smack into a counter more often than make it onto it. He has missed my lap on several occasions, not only do I have skull shaped bruises on my calf to prove it but an 8 inch scar from that memorable time that he actually made it onto my lap and slid off and all the way down.

The infamous Mr. Mack Muffin. I hate his name. The SPCA called him Spotz. Yeah. I wanted to call him Mack. HE'S hardy barn cat cross. He's a manly cat (well was) and he needed a manly name like Mack, not dispite what my father will tell you, a name like, I dunno Muffin. My dad pointed out that with a name like Muffin he'ed have to be the toughest cat on the block. I have lost the war on this and he is now simply called Muffy. I am dying of not thrilled. (can you guess the other reason that dad wanbted to call him Muffin?)

Muffy is the oldest of the cats. He is the bossiest. He holds himself apart from the rest more. He is the unhurdable. Goldie has scars from learning that not all cats are hurdable. When other cats aren't around he is the most nervous cat I have ever owned. He'll jump 10 feet if you hit him with a paper ball when he isn't expecting it. I know, I am a horrible person.

Sam, my baby. The most interesting thing about Sam is cut out of this picture. He has no tail. He is a manx. They are wicked smart and shapped like a ball. They have a double coat of fur as well. For the better part of a year It was just me and Sam but we moved back in with my parents (please see aforementioned health issues) and he's now part of the hurd. My father has been trying to rename him. So far he has been Chester, and right now Socrates. There were a few passing fancies in between that are best left forgotten. Sam was named after the cat in Tanya Huff's Keeper Series. Oddly enough before he was old enough to be fixed (or broken depending on your point of view) he fathered a litter of 3 kittens. One of those cats was pure black. I named that one Austin. Don't get it-go read the books.

The astute may notice that there is only 3 cats and 1 dog here. I don't have any good pictures of the other 2 at the moment so I will leave them for another time.

Knitting Magazine Publishers Need a Wake-up Call

2006-07-18T12:22:00.000-06:00

Ok I picked up my Vouge Knitting Magazines. I am thinking of starting to make my fall wardrobe as I mentioned previously. The aran skirt from winter 05/06 is classic. Perfect me. Except for a few minor details. Like even though I wear a size 7 pant the largest size is too small for me. The "Large" is a 30"waist. Excuse me? Isn't the average size in the States (where this mag is published) a 14/16? What is up with that? Will someone please let the editors know that knitting doesn't burn that many calories,nor does it give you abs of steel no matter how tight your guage is.

Ok I am apparently a very FAT size 7 ((eyeroll) I can adjust the pattern, assuming I could see it. The chart which is about 136 sitiches by 60 rows is only 10" by 4". So apparently I am also at fault for not having microscopic eyes. I mean this is small. There is no seperation at any regulated marks. Eg. a heavier gridline every 10 stitches or something.

<----actual size

And the final insult. The recommended yarn costs 130 dollars.American. I am Canadaian so tack on about 25%. While I am aware that their sister fashion magazine thinks nothing of calling a plainbutton down white shirt that costs $130 a steal it still doesn'tmake it right. I'll also admit that while my yarn budget is higher than my clothing budget it's still an absurd price. Am I the only one wishing these people were living in the real world?

Jinxsa

PS In the interest of fairness I should point out that I find thistrend more in the print aspect than online. Most online knitting magazines are much more realistic, this is probably due to the fact they are more interactive then print and the knitters are holding them accountable.

The Great Kniting Balrog

the blog is dead

Playing Games

Um hi remember me?

What's a little humiliation and nudity between strangers?

Mail Call

Leap Day

It's Official

Cocoa Swap Thanks

Short Little Cop-out post

Stupid Irony Get out of My Workman's Comp!

Move Over Murphy

A quick note about rage.

State of the UFO Address.

Scavenger Hunt.

Hot Cocoa Scavenger Hunt

New Resolution

New Year's Resolutions

Stupid Customer Tricks, Holiday Edition

I am why my dad has no hair.

Not to be all Bash-y but I have Some Complaints about Canada Post

Life Happens...

Catch up

Happy Halloween

For LB cuz he complains.

Humour Where for art thou...?

For Y/B

Inspiration, not so much

Secreyt Pal Package !!!

Is this on?

In place of doing my real job...

SP 11 Contest #2

Haven't I been here before?

No Sheep Swap, Joy or something with apt punctuation to make this sound happy.

For Michelle, Cuz She Whines! *hee*

Ravelry: The Surgeon General's Warning

Secret Pal 11 Questionaire

Sock Kit 2 Swap

Ravelry: The Ultimate Time suck, Kinda

Big post- I owe ya'll!

Socks! I have socks!

Do you have this in white?

Why Yes This Is A Cop Out

I have Not Dropped Off the Face of the Earth, Maybe If I Asked Nice Tho

Why Self Imposed Deadlines Suck.

7 Random Things About Me

Dreaming Big

My First Blog Contest

Flash The Stash

Drumroll Please..

Knitting MEME

Meet My inner Deamon

Monkey Sock Swap

Movie MEME

Anna Socks

My Sp 10 package

Dreaming of Prizes

Knitter's Treat Exchange

Dream Big

Secret Colour Swap

I've been measuring this a lot.

My Yahoo Messanger Has Been Wire Tappedby..well, me. Apparently.

Secret Pal 10

Secret Colour Swap Redux

My Last SP package *sniff*

Second Sock Syndrome Swap

New and Improved Doesn't Mean It Works

In which I officially acknowledge that I suck

Happy Holidays

Is dog fur a tree trimming?

Mitten Knittin Kitten Muffin Yo.

Santa Baby

We are the E-E-E-E-Ewoks and We live on the Forest Moon

Good to Know But I don't think it's true.

Kniting Mojo

Heaven-Sent Secret Pal.

Sick days

Stash Issues, me?

Caution: Do not Feed Blogger

WIP'd

For Michelle, Cuz She Whines! hee

My Last SP package sniff