Friday, July 29, 2005

I need my digital camera hooked up. Seriously. The shawl looks gorgeous and I'm dying to show off how lovely it is.

This is Friday, my official goof off day, so I'm having a tough time staying focused.

Wednesday, July 27, 2005


Ok, the Seascape shawl is going nicely, sort of. Wendy Knit's is very humbling because by the time I get to row 10 on a chart, she's done with yet another shawl. Bleh. After knitting and ripping out the same row three times, I've learned that knitting after midnight is a bad idea for me. Same with knitting while stressed (read that as pissed). Once my Hubby gets something in his head as something he needs to do, he keeps at it like a turtle clamped on your finger. He won't let go. So, while I was trying to figure out why my row had 9 stitches left at the end instead of 10 for the fourth time, the phone rang. Neuro's office returning Hubby's call that I should have made a couple of weeks ago about perscriptions. We've paid the monster deduction, I really don't care about where the meds come from as long as I have them in the cabinet when I need them. Hubs must have pestered the poor gal to death because she sounded annoyed with me. That could have been my annoyance at the knits transferring to her, or her own with not reaching Hubs at work.

Gyno's also called today with my CA-125's results. Not bad, overall, but high enough that the doc wants to see me as soon as bodily possible. It probably really IS the tumor. Crap.

In other news, K from the library, (she gets me my gigs at all the library branches) wants samples as advertisements for my classes. I have a scarf all ready to go and was working on a bit of lace for the advanced class when the annoyed call came in. AFter last night's rip of the lovely but thread-like merino, a bit of silk (like Rowan's Summer Tweed in Raffia) on thick bamboos is a nice break. After reading her blog, I'd commented to Wendy about my own lace problems with fine merino on what I thought were sharp bamboos. Ha! For a K2TOG, very few points are small enough. I'd never expected to feel such solidarity with a speed knitter like Wendy.

I'm looking forward to finishing up the little sample so I can go back to the shawl. I probably won't take the shawl on the Colorado trip, maybe a UFO or five. I'll have to take something for the dull parts of the drive, which is about 9 hours worth. Sigh. Such fun, having to knit for that long...

Monday, July 25, 2005

I love the Yarn Barn. Found a Weaving for Idiots book that had wonderful pictures, so now I know my warp from my weft. That was Saturday. Then on Sunday, Hubby had upgraded our MS Money to the 2006 trial version, so I spent the day getting all our accounts balanced and reconciled from the first of the year. yay. (lower case intentional) There's still some work left, mostly on wrapping up our mortgage with one company for its move to another. I could have put in adjusting entries just to get the balances correct, but to me, that's cheating. It's a form of "let's pretend...” not actual sound accounting.

Since Saturday was spent at the Army Reserve (from 8am-3pm, excluding the yarn buying), and then at the American Legion, (from 6pm-8pm), I only achieved traveling and showering that day. Then Sunday was finance and planning day. I'd like to get the house company clean all throughout BEFORE we leave on vacation. If the neighbor guy is going to come over and feed the cats, I'd like the place to be decent. Plus, we get back home a day or two before school starts, so I'll need to get Fry's supplies for her. We talked for an hour and a half on Saturday, so I know what styles she wants in notebooks and things.

Trash and pet litters left the building this morning. Once laundry is done, kitchen and bathrooms have been swabbed; I'm taking the afternoon off to start my shawl. Although, I do have three small Rubbermaid bins of scrap/waste yarn just begging to be sorted into stash busting projects...

No, I have a cute little set of new bamboo circulars that need some exercise. :D I'm dying to try out my loom and/or read the beginner's book. So much yarn, so little time.

In health info, I'm still at 155 AND 'started' today. Wow! Seriously, because I'd been playing fast and loose with the carbs (sugar), I'd not expected to be stable. I always gain 5lbs around 'this' time, anyway, and to have not bloated up like road kill? I'm happy with today's weigh-in. Not only that, but I worked out to the Total Body Sculpt this morning as well. Yay! First day of a new habit! It's not a lot, but it's a start. Most of the time, that's all I need to go off the deep end.

Back to the grind. I have lace to knit this afternoon.

Friday, July 22, 2005

I'm probably not THE best at grammar. I know and accept this. However, when the Associated Press lets something like this go by, a helpless feeling of riding to Hell in my own little hand basket washes over me. Hopefully, by the time anyone reads this, AP will have fixed "it's" freakin' error.

Is there anything more wonderful than getting yarn in the mail? Maybe getting to go to the Yarn Barn??? I think so! Today's yarn let me finish a long, skinny scarf made from combining
and .

Onscreen doesn't show how truly fluorescent the thing really is. Quite lovely, but something to sell. There's nothing worse than someone who graduated in the 80's wearing 80's colors.

Now that THAT's done... I did happen to finish the patriotic scarf last night, so there's technically nothing standing between my 'official' summer of lace shawl and me. Since tonight is detective marathon on USA, I'm all over it. I may have to put down the needles for the new episode of Monk, but other than that..

Tomorrow, Hubby drills at Lawrence, so I'm all over the Yarn Barn. Mom had found that cute little Heddle loom, which I have no idea of how to use. It'll be fun to see if there are any Weaving for Blithering Idiots books over there.

Thursday, July 21, 2005

I'm back! No car breakdowns or anything! Yay! Not only that, but the lawnmower is repaired, too. I get to be anal retentive about my yard again! Everything needs attention and I'm hoping it waits a while before getting to the roasting part of the day.

I absolutely love teaching knitting classes. The branch I taught today was nice, and it was the first time I'd been there. They want me back for two more classes in the fall. The students were pouring over my schedule, looking for other classes taught by ME, somewhere in their area. The libraries are spread out with 67 miles being the furthest distance between two I've taught. The drives are ok. I used to live 120 miles from the nearest Red Lobster, so I'm used to being far from anything.

Back to the salt mines. Cleaning house and playing with yarn.
Ug. I couldn't go to sleep until 4am last night. The house was too hot and the idea of being draped by a space heater who snores did not appeal. Bad news is that after an hour drive, I'll be teaching an Advanced Knitting class. Since these people are already past beginners, maybe I'll sneak off, curl up next to the Grammar section of the library. It'll be quietest there, judging by the horrible English in use by major publishers.

Not that my own writings are perfect, far from it. I'm great with run-on sentences and seem to only end said sentences with prepositions. Vast use of personal pronouns and sloppy use of passive verbs also rule. Echoes, repeating a word more than two or three times in a paragraph, are increasing in my writings, as well. Of course, in a world where it's equals its, loose equals lose, and then equals than, not a whole lot of people notice.

I'm sleepy, cramping, and cranky. Obviously, it's time for better living through chemistry.

You'd think that after being up so late, I'd have the lace shawl almost done. Nope! Instead I worked a little more on the patriotic scarf. That one is taking longer than I thought what with the three colors forever getting tangled. Unravelling them takes more time than the actual knitting. I don't know HOW the fair isle people do it.

London bombings: Yet another, less intense one today. I have no family or friends there, and I've only spent two weeks out of my entire 40 years there. Yet, from the first time I hopped out of the plane at Gatwick, I felt truly at home there. I never get lost and I feel more relaxed there than any place in the world so far. Even in my own hometown, places and people are familiar and predictable, but not 'home' like London and Great Britan. I understand that not all Muslims are bad, but after the first bombing, my first instinct is "Round them up, send them back". No questions, no hesitations. It's terribly racist, but if they're going to become citizens and THEN bomb the place, fine. Off you go. If you can't take care of it, you can't have it.

I'm going to toddle off for a shower and a triple threat of meds: Midrin, Zoloft (great for preventing migraines and accidental homicides), and a vitamin. Must. Be. Human. Today.

Wednesday, July 20, 2005

I am first coffee, then chocolate. Yummmmm. Sometimes, I like me.


What Flavour Are You? Buzz buzz, I am Coffee flavoured.Buzz buzz, I am Coffee flavoured.


I am popular in the workplace, even though I am often bitter. I am energetic to the point of being frenetic; buzz buzz, out of my way. I tend to overwork myself and need periods of recovery time. What Flavour Are You?



What Flavour Are You? I am Chocolate Flavoured.I am Chocolate Flavoured.


I am sweet and a little bit naughty. I am one of the few clinically proven aphrodisiacs. Sometimes I can seem a little hard, but show warmth and I soon melt. What Flavour Are You?
Ok, I have the lace yarn (815, 91, & 100, the lace pattern, now I need to do the thing. Since today is Anti-Procrastination day... I'll have to start the gorgeous seascape shawl tonight. This afternoon, I'd like to wrap up this patriotic scarf I've worked on for the past couple of days. I haven't devoted a lot of time to it. I'm also in an Anti-UFO mood and want to get a few of them done before moving on to my lace project. I don't know which color to start with...it's going to be tough to decide. The merino is so soft and lovely, it'll be fun and I'm eager to begin.

Bleh. I'm actually supposed to be a lot less slug-like this week, but just can't get motivated. Is it the impending 'that time'? Probably. I taught the elderly to knit at my monthy nursing home gig. They're sweet, if a bit negative, and I've started them on hats. This could be profitable, since the Juanitas (there's two of them) only knit for that one hour a month. Then, tomorrow, I go to my usual library class to teach. This is advanced, which is fun because the students ask me their tough questions. Usually I know the answer, but usually have a Vogue knitting reference book as a backup, just in case.

I boycott Amazon, by the way. Do a search on NAMBLA and see what come up on the screen. Nasty stuff. Barnes and Noble may have the same book, but it's not front and center, either. Yech.

Back to the knitting, sort of. I stopped by the health food mega store yesterday on the way home. It's wonderful, if a bit overpriced. Just about every obscure ingredient is there. Wonderful, since I cook from scratch a lot. Is it because I'm a health-nut earth mother who wears mumus and macremaes? (Can't be because I can't even SPELL it) No, it's because I'm a high fructose corn syrup control freak who needs to know what is exactly in the food fed to my family.

My soaps are almost on the tube. Don't think of soaps as stupid, mind-numbing time wasters, no! They are good excuses to eat lunch and knit for an hour and a half. If it weren't for Schwan's tiramisu cups, I'd be perfect on my South Beach diet phase one. I could sit and eat all six little cups, but at 300+ calories each, after 4, I'm over the calorie limit for my height. Official weight for today: 155. It's not where I want to be, but it's ok. If the weight comes back as fast as it's coming off...that's great. Monday, I started out at 157, and yeah, it's probably water weight. 155 was my newest 'fat' weight, with 152 being my skinny weight. A year ago, 160 was my fat weight, so there's improvement.

I'm so thrilled! In mid-August, we're going to Colorado for a family vacation. The Fry has been to the Gulf and the Pacific, dipping toes in both oceans, but has never seen REAL mountains. She's seen the Smoky and Quartz mountains, ranges so old that they're bedrock. Every fall, I have the strong urge to head to the Rockies to hike and photograph those gorgeous aspens. Plus, my Mom grew up around there, and I'd like to see where she used to play.

In other news: WHY does hairball-b-gone catfood have the worst carpet staining dyes? Four to five carpet stain removers failed on the barf in the dining room. I gave up the fight earlier in the week and will take it up again today. Stupid cat is obviously allergic to clean carpets, whether I use carpet cleaner or plain water.

Friday, July 15, 2005

Things to Do Before I Croak

I am a posting fool. It's either feast or famine with me, I know. Whatever, I'll try to do better. In the meantime, I stole this. Whatever is listed in bold type are items that I've actually done already. Some of these aren't going to happen, though, no matter how long I live. It's long, but enjoy...

1. Bought everyone in the pub a drink
2. Swam with wild dolphins
3. Climbed a mountain
4. Taken a Ferrari for a test drive
5. Been inside the Great Pyramid
6. Held a tarantula
7. Taken a candlelit bath with someone
8. Said 'I love you' and meant it
9. Hugged a tree
10. Done a striptease
11. Bungee jumped
12. Visited Paris
13. Watched a lightning storm at sea
14. Stayed up all night long, and watch the sun rise
15. Seen the Northern Lights
16. Gone to a huge sports game
17. Walked the stairs to the top of the leaning Tower of Pisa
18. Grown and eaten your own vegetables
19. Touched an iceberg
20. Slept under the stars
21. Changed a baby's diaper
22. Taken a trip in a hot air balloon
23. Watched a meteor shower
24. Gotten drunk on champagne
25. Given more than you can afford to charity
26. Looked up at the night sky through a telescope
27. Had an uncontrollable giggling fit at the worst possible moment
28. Had a food fight
29. Bet on a winning horse
30. Taken a sick day when you're not ill
31. Asked out a stranger
32. Had a snowball fight
33. Photocopied your bottom on the office photocopier
34. Screamed as loudly as you possibly can
35. Held a lamb
36. Enacted a favourite fantasy
37. Taken a midnight skinny dip
38. Taken an ice cold bath
39. Had a meaningful conversation with a beggar
40. Seen a total eclipse
41. Ridden a roller coaster
42. Hit a home run
43. Fit three weeks miraculously into three days
44. Danced like a fool and not cared who was looking
45. Adopted an accent for an entire day
46. Visited the birthplace of your ancestors
47. Actually felt happy about your life, even for just a moment
48. Had two hard drives for your computer
49. Visited all 50 states
50. Loved your job for all accounts
51. Taken care of someone who was shit-faced
52. Had enough money to be truly satisfied
53. Had amazing friends
54. Danced with a stranger in a foreign country
55. Watched wild whales
56. Stolen a sign
57. Backpacked in Europe
58. Taken a road trip
59. Gone rock climbing
60. Lied to a foreign government official in that country to avoid notice
61. Midnight walk on the beach
62. Skydived
63. Visited Ireland
64. Been heartbroken longer than you were actually in love
65. In a restaurant, sat at a stranger's table and had a meal with them
66. Visited Japan
67. Bench-pressed your own weight Actually benched more than that.
68. Milked a cow
69. Alphabetized your records
70. Pretended to be a superhero
71. Sung karaoke
72. Lounged around in bed all day
73. Posed nude in front of strangers
74. Gone scuba diving
75. Got it on to "Let's Get It On" by Marvin Gaye
76. Kissed in the rain
77. Played in the mud
78. Played in the rain
79. Gone to a drive-in theater
80. Done something you should regret, but don't regret it
81. Visited the Great Wall of China
82. Discovered that someone who's not supposed to have known about your blog has discovered your blog
83. Dropped Windows in favor of something better
84. Started a business
85. Fallen in love and not had your heart broken
86. Toured ancient sites
87. Taken a martial arts class
88. Swordfought for the honor of a woman
89. Played D&D for more than 6 hours straight (too bad Sims 1 or 2 don't count, ha ha!
90. Gotten married
91. Been in a movie
92. Crashed a party
93. Loved someone you shouldn't have
94. Kissed someone so passionately it made them dizzy
95. Gotten divorced
96. Had sex at the office
97. Gone without food for 5 days (ha ha ha! Like THAT would volunarily happen with me)
98. Made cookies from scratch
99. Won first prize in a costume contest
100. Ridden a gondola in Venice
101. Gotten a tattoo
102. Found that the texture of some materials can turn you on(yes, but not in a 'on' on sort of way, eww)
103. Rafted the Snake River
104. Been on television news programs as an "expert"
105. Got flowers for no reason
106. Masturbated in a public place
107. Got so drunk you don't remember anything
108. Been addicted to some form of illegal drug (never even TRIED this, and no, my Mom has no idea this blog exists)
109. Performed on stage
110. Been to Las Vegas
111. Recorded music
112. Eaten shark
113. Had a one-night stand
114. Gone to Thailand
115. Seen Siouxsie live
116. Bought a house
117. Been in a combat zone
118. Buried one/both of your parents
119. Shaved or waxed your pubic hair off
120. Been on a cruise ship
121. Spoken more than one language fluently
122. Gotten into a fight while attempting to defend someone
123. Bounced a cheque
124. Performed in Rocky Horror
125. Read—and understood—your credit report
126. Raised children (child, who's not quite there, yet)
127. Recently bought and played with a favourite childhood toy (I found metal jacks! Yay!)
128. Followed your favorite band/singer on tour
129. Created and named your own constellation of stars
130. Taken an exotic bicycle tour in a foreign country
131. Found out something significant that your ancestors did
132. Called or written your Congressman/Member of Parliament
133. Picked up and moved to another city to just start over
134. —More than once? —More than thrice?
135. Walked the Golden Gate Bridge
136. Sang loudly in the car, and didn't stop when you knew someone was looking
137. Had an abortion or your female partner did
138. Had plastic surgery
139. Survived an accident that you shouldn't have survived
140. Wrote articles for a large publication
141. Lost over 100 pounds
142. Held someone while they were having a flashback
143. Piloted an airplane
144. Petted a stingray
145. Broken someone's heart
146. Helped an animal give birth
147. Been fired or laid off from a job
148. Won money on a TV game show
149. Broken a bone
150. Killed a human being
151. Gone on an African photo safari
152. Ridden a motorcycle
153. Driven any land vehicle at a speed of greater than 100mph
154. Had a body part of yours below the neck pierced
155. Fired a rifle, shotgun, or pistol
156. Eaten mushrooms that were gathered in the wild
157. Ridden a horse
158. Had major surgery
159. Had sex on a moving train
160. Had a snake as a pet
161. Hiked to the bottom of the Grand Canyon
162. Slept through an entire flight: takeoff, flight, and landing
163. Slept for more than 30 hours over the course of 48 hours
164. Visited more foreign countries than U.S. states
165. Visited all 7 continents
166. Taken a canoe trip that lasted more than 2 days
167. Eaten kangaroo meat
168. Fallen in love at an ancient Mayan burial ground
169. Been a sperm or egg donor
170. Eaten sushi
171. Had your picture in the newspaper
172. Had 2 (or more) healthy romantic relationships for over a year in your lifetime
173. Changed someone's mind about something you care deeply about
174. Gotten someone fired for their actions
175. Gone back to school
176. Parasailed
177. Changed your name from original name to married name and back again, which might not be what was intended with this one
178. Petted a cockroach
179. Eaten fried green tomatoes
180. Read The Iliad
181. Selected one "important" author who you missed in school, and read
182. Dined in a restaurant and stolen silverware, plates, cups because your apartment needed them
183. —and gotten 86'ed from the restaurant because you did it so many times, they figured out it was you
184. Taught yourself an art from scratch
185. Killed and prepared an animal for eating
186. Apologised to someone years after inflicting the hurt
187. Skipped all your school reunions and will continue to
188. Communicated with someone without sharing a common spoken language
189. Been elected to public office
190. Written your own computer language
191. Thought to yourself that you're living your dream
192. Had to put someone you love into hospice care
193. Built your own PC from parts
194. Sold your own artwork to someone who didn't know you
195. Had a booth at a street fair
196. Dyed your hair
197. Been a DJ
198. Found out someone was going to dump you via LiveJournal
199. Written your own role playing game
200. Been arrested
Hey baby, want a quickie? Mmmm, of course you do....

1. Naked by Falco
2. Can't Take My Eyes Off of You by Morten Harket (to my own Fry)
3. Angel in the Snow - Ah-ha
4. Der Kommissar (German version only) - Falco
5. All I Have to Do is Dream - The Everly Brothers
6. Remember - The Bay City Rollers
7. Soul Boy - Melanie C
8. Hit Me With Your Best Shot - Pat Benatar
9. Steuermann - Falco
10. Concerto For Guitar in A - Vivaldi
11. Emotional - Falco
12. I Wish I Cared - Ah-ha
13. Love You Hate You - The Captain UK Experience
14. Cyberlove - Falco (this may be why my computer loves Falco, ha ha ha ha!!!)
15. Vienna Calling - Falco (see?)
16. Ga Ga - Melanie C (THE ultimate I hate you song)
17. Walk Away - Geri Halliwell
18. Out of the Dark - Falco
19. The Twelfth of Never - Donny Osmond (you have NO idea how hard that was to type and stop laughing, you'll hurt yourself)
20. Tricks - Falco

I wonder if I shuffed my playlist AGAIN if it would be as Falco-heavy as this one... All his good stuff was never played here in the US. Such a shame, he was really good, as is Ah-Ha. Their best isn't played Stateside, either. Americans (of which I am one) can be so myopic sometimes. :(
When one's mortgage is due at the same place one can get Diet Pepsi AND Hagen Daas, one should go, right? But when one has lost a contact lens, then dropped and spilled mouthwash, spilling said mouthwash into one's eyes.... Well, one is afraid to actually drive a 2000lb death machine.

Still, the lure of Hagen Daas priced at 2 for $5.... That, and the fact that I have NO diet pepsi and the DT's are really getting to me.

I want to make up a quiz for me at Quizilla that can gage where I am on the Martha and chaste/Slobby slug and slutpuppy.

The baby Fry called last night. I love and adore that child. She's so cute and funny, and sounds so freakin' grown up. She also was a bit bent out of shape that SHE can't have a cellphone while her friend does have one. V doesn't need a cell, if she's an irresponsible poop like her mom, WE don't need the cell bill. We'll see what T-Mobile has as far as families talk free plans.

I knew it! I'm a monster! ;)




You're Jurassic Park!

by Michael Crichton

You combine all the elements of a mad scientist, a brash philosopher, a humble researcher, and a money-hungry attracter of tourists. With all these features, you could build something monumental or get chased around by your own demons. Probably both, in fact. A movie based on your life would make millions, and spawn at least two sequels that wouldn't be very good. Be very careful around islands.


Take the Book Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.



Actually, this WAS a pretty good book until the kids saved the day. I LOATHE that. Too Spielburgian to me. Ole Steve tends to indulge his fantasies of being the misunderstood kid who saves the world while adults look on, slack-jawed and drooling.

Another quiz, since I'm on a roll....




You're a Wasp!

Brutal and dangerous, you are capable of wreaking havoc on others
with little remorse. You love mud and seem to appear out of nowhere whenever
people find a bit of wet dirt. You have a fierce temper and don't mind
resorting to it whenever people get in your way, especially by hogging all
that wonderful mud! Your home is where your heart is, but is also relatively
flimsy and ugly. You are almost unquestionably white, Anglo-Saxon, and
Protestant.



Take the Animal Quiz
at the Blue Pyramid.



Funny thing is, wasps are THE only thing I'm totally phobic about. Is it deep and profound that I have a hair-raising morbid fear of 'myself'???

Now to go on and drive the beloved yellow death machine. All those between home and HyVee should tremble in fear...

Thursday, July 14, 2005

Three in one day, who'da thought...

I took a test and I belong, due to my various heretic beliefs and sexually sinful ways, in the seventh circle of hell. I didn't agree until Ford Motor Credit called me asking about friend-who-owes-me-money's phone number, which, after I found out I wasn't paying for her newer than mine car, gleefully supplied. :D

I'm a baaaad girl. Sadly, I'm sure karma is going to come back and bite me in the ass, since I'm enjoying this so much. :(
Who knew Hell would be so simple to build???

Parents who bring squalling brats to R-rated movies
Circle I Limbo

Creationists
Circle II Whirling in a Dark & Stormy Wind

DMV Employees
Circle III Mud, Rain, Cold, Hail & Snow

General asshats
Circle IV Rolling Weights

Saddam Hussein
Circle V Stuck in Mud, Mangled

River Styx

Osama bin Laden
Circle VI Buried for Eternity

River Phlegyas

George Bush
Circle VII Burning Sands

Republicans
Circle IIX Immersed in Excrement

NAMBLA Members
Circle IX Frozen in Ice

Design your own hell



You're Thailand!

Calmer and more staunchly independent than almost all those around you, you have a long history of rising above adversity.  Recent adversity has led to questions about your sexual promiscuity and the threat of disease, but you still manage to attract a number of tourists and admirers.  And despite any setbacks, you can really cook a good meal whenever it's called for.  Good enough to make people cry.
Take the Country Quiz at the Blue Pyramid



Stoopid tumor.

The good news is it's barely a blip on the screen. I had the CA-125 bloodtest yesterday as a baseline for ovarian cancer detection. No big. So was the alleged 'tumor'. The gyn said he LOVES to operate and he didn't see a need to do so with me. He really wanted to but didn't need to at all. So much for 'the tumor made me do it'. I could have been marathon training this whole time, too. Ok, so maybe I'll just do the 5K, then. THAT I can handle. ;)

So, I'm doing this summer of lace thing and realize, knitting mohair lace is crap. Me no likee the mohair. I'm going to have to work harder than if it were a cute little cotton thing. Oh well, it'll be gorgeous when it's done. :D

Slow and Steady Wins the Race