Fiber Lust

2004-01-06T11:24:00.000-05:00

Outta Here.....

Well, as much as I hate to admit it....I'm terrible at this. All day long as I go about my fibery pursuits I think of all sorts of clever little observations about which to write. Then as soon as I sit down at that computer, it all seems so dull. I love reading your blogs and do so everyday. I just can't seem to get around to writing my own. I have to face facts, folks. I'm a voyeur. I like to watch others do it.

I suppose it doesn't help that the computer is in this chilly damp basement. Perhaps someday when my office moves upstairs I will be more responsible with my blogging. Until then, I gracefully (or not so gracefully) bow out.

I'm not gone, though. I'm still watching YOU.....

X X X X X O O O O O

Fiber Lust

2003-12-10T09:10:00.000-05:00

It's like Christmas already.

Does everyone get as silly giddy as I do when the new Knitty appears? What did we all do to deserve such fab goodies? For free! Apparently we were very very good in our respective previous lives.

I've decided to post a permanent (more or less) photo of my wedding shawl on the sidebar to the right. After the wedding, you know, it went right into the cedar chest and only rarely comes out now for requested viewings, during which I find myself apologizing profusely for the hamster smell emenating from it. So I've put it out for something of a public viewing. All that work, you know. And all that stress! Last spring I taught an entire course on the Psychology of Anxiety and managed to convince myself that stress is what is killing us all. I honestly believe now you can give up cigarettes, coffee, fat, and sugar, aerobisize until you drop, but if you live a high stress life it's all for nothing. A constant level of stress and and anxiety will decrease your quality and life and surely hasten the end of it.

I only mention all this because because I am now on a quest for calm. (yeah, sure, that's why I married a man with three teenagers...) -- so in that spirit I've decided to give up knitting to deadlines and punted all my Christmas gift plans. I found myself dangerously close to not having fun.

Having said all that, I am thinking about making some kind of significant change to my blogging strategy, for several reason, not the least being that Blogger is just bumming me out. For reasons beyond my immediate comprehension, I can not edit posts after I write them. Which stresses me out to no end!

2003-11-30T22:22:00.000-05:00

Shameless Plug

Have I mentioned in the past couple weeks how much I love living in Southern Indiana? I was thinking about this yet again while we drove through farmland on our way to Indianapolis today.

There’s this guy here who write songs about this area, this area which has a long history as an artists’ colony, attracting all sorts of colorful (no pun intended) characters, as artists’ colonies tend to do. Anyways, this local musician writes songs that recount the stories and histories of this area. Slats Klug and his wife Lauren Roberts are local celebrities and if you haven’t heard of them, and you are roots fans, then you should. She has an amazing voice, reminiscent of Bette Midler with power, style, and sheer musicality (if that's a word). When I say Slats “write songs” I mean he writes the lyrics, the music, and I believe he does the arranging as well. I just can’t tell you how great they are. I mean, how can you not love a song titled “Possum Trot”….hmmm? Answer me that….

But getting back to my original point, how much I like living here…well, thanks to Slats, the entire pace and quality of life here is put to music now. Like this:

Boys we’re losing this here race against the future
All this hurry won’t help them in the end
And where they’re rushin’ to, Hell I ain’t too sure
Put on the brakes like nature did intend
[Slat Klug, 1999, “My Brown County Home”]

Of course, it loses something without being able to hear the harmonies. I wish I could play it for you.

Here they are.

And let me tell you how I come to have this photo…..they played at my wedding. This is the music to which my husband and I fell in love. Can you get any more romantic that having the band that plays YOUR SONG actually play at YOUR WEDDING? Neener neener.

Any-a-ways, I actually have ANOTHER reason for telling all this. Slats and his crew had their annual holiday concert Saturday night, and as always, it was great. It turns out that they are having another concert in a couple of weeks in Columbus. YES! that’s Columbus, Indiana…. the little city having been made so famous in our particular fibery social circle lately by the intrepid Threadbare guys when they up and moved their business there a few weeks back. It has not escaped my notice, reading Rob’s blog lately, that a lot of you regularly make the trek to Columbus (Indiana) to visit them these days. I, personally, have not done so, and I hang my head in shame since I live in the next town over. But I digress. What I want to say is that I highly recommend that, if you happen to be thinking of a road trip in the next couple of weeks to visit the Threadbare Fiber Arts Studios, you might also consider going to see this fabulous band in concert as well.

When exactly is this concert you ask? Ummm, well, the problem is that I *did* have a couple drinks under my belt when it was announced, so I don’t exactly remember. BUT I WILL FIND OUT!! I promise. And I’ll post it here as soon as I do.

Fiber Lust

2003-11-25T12:08:00.000-05:00

Decisions

I wanted very much to give my mom a lace shawl for Christmas, but it is becoming increasingly clear that if I try to do that, I will be able to make no other gifts for Christmas, which would be problematic given my apparent scarcity of funds this year. But if I don't make the shawl for my mom, whatever will I get *her*? oh dear oh dear oh dear.

Fiber Lust

2003-11-19T10:54:00.000-05:00

Thanks!

I received some kind words in my comments yesterday, for which I'm so grateful. Brings up a good point....I don't have any friends with step-kids of their own. I've thought about this, and it's odd, but I really don't know have anyone with whom to commiserate.

My own son is 21. I was a single parent the entire time he was growing up and we have always been very close. I didn’t appreciate how unusual our relationship was…but there was little conflict and when there was, we discussed things quite rationally. I understand this is not entirely unusual for single parent families. But now I am in a much more normal household with normal rebellious teenagers with wild mood swings and it is quite a steep learning curve for me to deal with. On the other hand….it could be so very much worse. At least 50% of the time they are quite nice to me.

Oh oh oh…..what’s this?

I finally did it….I think it is the most strangely shaped sock I’ve ever seen, but it fits like a dream! I think I’m going to like making socks. They are quick, interesting, and easy. What more could a fiber girl ask for?

And in the More Information Than You Needed Department…..

I wear clogs all the time. I even try to get away with them when it’s icy out, I’ve learned a lot about skating across ice (on my feet, as opposed to my bottom) since I moved to the Midwest. So, this not such a big deal, is it? Except….

I have a club foot. Or had. I was given intense therapy at birth, braces, prescription shoes, surgery as a teen, and now my foot looks more or less normal. What I don’t have is a matching pair of feet. The tweaked foot is two sizes shorter, and one size wider, than the “normal” foot. And I tend to walk on the side of the one foot which makes it easy to twist my ankle and makes my knee and back hurt from time to time. And I won’t even start to tell you about trying to find shoes that don’t hurt at least of the feet at all times.

So when I bought my first pair of clogs the prognosis was grim. I was told that I would, at the very least, break my ankle, and probably do permanent damage to my soul.

Heh. What did they know?

Clogs are very forgiving shoes. If one of them doesn’t fit exactly right, it’s ok. Individualists that they are, they don’t have to conform to any one foot type. And there is something about a good pair of clogs that corrects one’s gait. I haven’t stopped to figure it out really, but my knees never hurt when I wear clogs and, in 20 years of footed bliss, I have never, not once, twisted my ankle while wearing them.

This love affair with clogs leads directly to a search for Interesting Socks, of course.

Ahh. I think I’ve found my calling…..

Fiber Lust

2003-11-17T21:26:00.000-05:00

So it is written

I have decided that they are step-demons, these offspring of my husband's. No doubt I am a step-monster to them, so we're even.

I really do try to refrain from complaining. It's not like I didn't know they existed. It's just that they can be so....unpleasant...at times.

I need a good yoga class. Or good drugs. Preferably drugs.

Oh, and this is a real winner....I forgot to the order the *&(*^( turkey. I ONLY invited my entire set of in-laws over for dinner next week. I went to my favorite hippie-trippie natural food store today to order my favorite organic all-natural running-free-in-grass happy turkey, and they told me it was too late.

I tried explaining to them (the hippie-store people) that I'm from California and I HAVE to have a turkey that represents my heritage in order to impress my new family...but they were unmoved.

Maybe an Austrian turkey......? No, I'm not going there.

So, besides degenerating to near-total flakedom, and besides being thrown glances-that-kill every time I walk through the living room, though, things are good. It's getting cold out and that means pretty much every time I leave the house I get to wear something I've made all by my lonesome.

This old scarf is getting all kinds of new attention from the younger crowd. Particularly at the LYS, very young women bring their mothers over to me to tell them that they need to make that scrarf for them.

Does anyone want to trade a really cool hippie scarf for a good fresh hippie turkey?

Fiber Lust

2003-11-12T08:21:00.000-05:00

Zen Time

That's me on the right, and my step-daughter on the left, having a little quality time. I think she fully groks the medititative aspect of spinning. Doesn't she look relaxed?

My sweetie made the wheel on the right for me while I was in Florida last year. But since I've been back I haven't had a lot of time to actually use it, being obsessed with knitting the wedding shawl and all that nonsense. But I'm back in the saddle now (so to speak).

My homemade wheel is really lovely. I'm tall, and I've found that some wheels just don't fit me. My husband built this one to my specifications and really tweaked it. It is smooth as silk. Eventually I'm going to stain it....I'd like to stain it different colors, but I have yet to work out exactly what colors I want.

The wheel on the left, the one my step-daughter is using, is a recent yard-sale acquisition....a Clemes & Clemes. My local expert spinner told me was a qualified "ok" wheel....which means I suppose that I'm a qualified "ok" spinner since I really like this wheel. It cleaned up nicely and, other than some stiff leather joints that need replacing, is very smooth. The wheel is so heavy that once it gets going, it practically spins itself. My step-daughter likes it quite a bit, too.

She isn't very goal oriented yet (she's only 12)....so I suspect that she's just going to spin like crazy and we're going to end up with mountains of homespun without a purpose.

Worse things could happen.

Fiber Lust

2003-11-11T10:02:00.000-05:00

Wormy Goodness

I have two teenage step-daughters now. One told me in no uncertain terms that she wants a scarf for Christmas. The other tries to pretend I don't exist, so she's getting a scarf, too.

The question is, what kind of scarf? I had my mind made up that it would be chennile since she seems to be something of a tactile person.

But no matter what I do, it looks like hell. I've tried smaller needles, multiple strands of yarn, narrower ribbing, wider ribbing.....and it either resembles rope more than knit, or it worms.

Perhaps something.....that....what's it called? Chinchilla?

I don't actually expect her to like me for making her a scarf, or anythign as silly as that. But I do recall being pretty miserable as a teenager myself and see? I turned out ok.

Munchies for Thought

2003-11-05T10:29:00.000-05:00

Munchies for Thought

Get it? Food for thought? Munchies......? (sigh)

My son is majoring in political science and philosophy. So I get these arbitrary emails from him from time to time.

===============

Mom,

So I was watching rock the vote on CNN. It had the democratic candidates answering questions from young people, some from email. So, the very, very last question of the night was for all of them and it was, "How many of you are willing to admit to using marijuana in the past?"

Sharpton said he was a church man and it wasn't part of the church deal so he didn't use it.

Dennis Kucinich said he had never used it but he thought it should be decriminalized.

John Edwards said yes.

Joe Lieberman said he was sorry to disappoint the crowd and said he never used it.

Wesley Clark said that he couldn't say that he'd ever used it.

Howard Dean said, "Yes"

Carol Mosley-Braun said that she refused to answer the question.

And I missed what John Kerry had said, cuz I had to rush back into the room, he probably said yes though, the crowd was loud and he was in the vietnam war and protested against it after he got out and stuff. Dick Gerphard was there.

Pretty surprising, plus Anderson Cooper and his producer people selected this question out of the batch of email questions as the one they needed to get in at the end while they still had a chance. Does this affect *your* vote?

2003-10-28T19:42:00.000-05:00

Well now, where were we...?

So…I figure my blog credentials are about shot now. Can someone please explain to me why I accomplish so much less when I have lots of time in which to do this alleged accomplishing? Here I am, a woman of leisure (so to speak), and I cannot (well, I *suppose* I *could*….I just don’t) get anything done. The good news is that I’m going back to work next week. Part time, but maybe, just maybe, it will be enough external organization to kick-start my DA (i.e. Dead Ass). But for what it’s worth, I’ve haven’t been entirely idle. I made a scarf to give to the woman who kindly married us gratis:

And I made a prototype poncho for my step-daughter:

Not much there, just two rectangles sewn together with a little neck added in. But I think (hope, pray) it will be cute once we pick out some colorful yarn and add few “extras”…..

I have Christmas gifts weighing heavily on my mind, also. You know, the usual: scarves, hats, etc. I got this idea to make a little “river god” motif on my brother’s annual hat, since whitewater now appears to own him. Do you think it will work??

I used to whitewater, too. But then whitewater sucked me under a rock and we haven’t gotten along so well ever since. I prefer to knit, now.

2003-10-22T06:06:00.000-05:00

Blog Heavy

I think that one of the reasons I don't write as much as I'd like here is that I find blogger a little clunky....not that I've tried real hard learn all it's tricks, nor have I investigated any other programs like Movable Type. But I'd *really* like posting pictures to be less hassle than it currently is for me.

Anyways, lots of fun stuff in the pipeline....coming soon!

2003-10-15T09:40:00.000-05:00

Oh gawd....I just realized that there were bunch of really nice comments about the shawl! Thanks, everyone, for your kind words!

I used a merino-silk blend lace weight for this. It was nice to work with, but I was unhappy about the uneven coloring. Parts of it were more off-white than others. I also designed it and now have a complete chart of the entire shawl. Someone at the LYS told me I should sell the pattern, but it seems somehow like bad karma to sell my wedding shawl pattern. Give it away, maybe, but sell....? Besides, there would be a few things to change as it came out about 20% longer than I had planned.

Thanks again, everyone!

2003-10-15T09:19:00.000-05:00

I'm naturally slow

It takes me forever to get anything done, I get tired easily, am prone to anemia, etc. So when something as big as getting married happens, it takes me quite a while to recover. So here I am, married and mostly back to normal. And without further ado, here we are:

dancin' in the barn

It was so much fun! I wish I could post more pictures, but this is all I have so far. I had arranged for a friend to take pictures of the entire event with my digital camera so I could have some instant gratification. But, in the excitement of the moment (go figure), I forgot to give it to him. I had it with me, but it sat on the sidelines throughout the entire event. I never once thought about it, and he never asked. [you don't suppose that meant he really didn't want to spend his time at the party taking pictures, do you? ..... nah....]

AAAUUUUGGGGHHH.

But I'll have real pictures very soon.

Do I hear cries of, "but...but...where is the SHAWL???" It was a freakin' 80 degrees and humid on Saturday, and even hotter in the barn. Which, I suppose, is a whole lot better than the "severe thunderstorms" which were originally predicted. But I certainly did wear it all long as I could, I just don't have any pictures of it yet. [sigh] Amazing how warm a wool/silk lace shawl can actually be.

We are having a beautiful autumn, and Saturday was postcard perfect. Here is what it looked like about 4 days before that:

Life, as they say, is good.

2003-10-06T16:09:00.000-05:00

I'd love to stay and chat.....

....but the end is drawing near.

2003-09-24T10:59:00.000-05:00

Oh, no no no

I've changed my mind. If you keep up with Yentala's blog (and I know you do, admit it!), then you know that THE thing to be making this season is Yentalong "Shloffing" sachet pillow. Awesome cool!

2003-09-24T10:32:00.000-05:00

Cast Your Mind to the Future....

Someday, like next month, I want to make the following:

Socks -- I've never knit socks and it's high time I did. But where to start? I am leaning towards Wendy's toe-up pattern, but Rob's Broadripples call to me also. Decisions, decisions.

Husband sweater -- I defer to those much wiser than myself and have held off on this project until he is in fact my husband. Besides, I'm still looking for the perfect pattern for this.

Sideways Garter Stitch Gloves -- From Spin-off magazine. I made these last year and loved every minute of them.

Like the Time Warp, let's do it again!

Misc -- Well, I'm partial to the Booga Bag. Who can resist a name like that? And/or the ubiquitous Multidirectional Diagonal Scarf -- want that, too. And I've been promising my son a cozy afghan for some time now.

UFO's -- umm, yeah I suppose I should finish my other shawls-in-progress before I get sidelined into all these other projects. Except the socks. I'm going to start socks the day after the wedding, I swear it.

2003-09-22T15:08:00.000-05:00

Addendum

Gads, what an indulgent post this morning. I'm going with the bride-to-be excuse....it's less than 20 days and I'm rapidly losing my mind.

That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.

2003-09-22T10:36:00.000-05:00

So stooopid

Today is my birthday and I'm depressed because I can't dance. I can't imagine anything much stupider. I have been entertaining this fantasy about dancing, really dancing, at my wedding. We took lessons even. But many months, and many dollars later, we can hardly do anything at all. It is an issue of priority, I think. There are so many things, besides practice, that demand our attention at night. If we had made it a priority, it would have happened. But instead we were making sure the kitchen was spic'n span, and the lawn was mowed, and the knitting was attended to.....always something.

It has taken three months for us to learn a basic foxtrot, and one turn. How much more can I expect in three weeks?

Why does this bum me out so much?

2003-09-12T12:54:00.000-05:00

Re: Johnny Cash

This music video he made recently, Hurt, is the single most haunting and emotional song I've ever experienced. Deeply, deeply sad. If anything ever marked the end of a life, this was it.

Oh, he was an original and now he is a legend.

2003-09-08T10:56:00.000-05:00

Something Old, Something New....

By the time I finish this, it will qualify as the "old" thing.

The knot (called a Lover's knot...how apropos! (I always wanted to say that)) near the top makes up the center panel. I only recently added it because I realized I didn't care looks of the two rows of hearts pointed at each other. They looked like a single of row of bows. Too silly.

A few notes about the shawl so far (before I forget, which in my addled state is always a potential problem):

1. I originally cast on, using the crochet chain method (forget what's proper name is at the moment), right at the apex of the bottom row of hearts (which are upside down in the photo). I knit out the edge, using a celtic pattern I charted myself, and incorporating the fern border as I went. After the celtic bit was done, I continued the fern border, adding several more columns of that pattern in the body of the shawl. At the end of THAT, there are some words, which you can't see in this photo and which I'm not going to reveal just yet. Finally, I transferred the knitting to scrap yarn to hold it, then picked up the stitches back at the crochet cast on and started the pattern again in the opposite direction.

2. It was at this point that I realized I wasn't going to like the looks of the hearts so close together, so I charted the Lover's knot to go in this space. BUT....a problem. The whole reason I was working from center-out was so that the fern pattern would be symmetric. I didn’t want the ferns all pointing in one direction, I wanted them all oriented center-to-edge. But, by inserting a center panel, I was no longer working from the center, I was working from off-center. I needed another pattern to fill in the border of the center panel before I started the fern pattern again. So border on either side of the Lover’s knot became a geometric thingy that is more or less symmetric. When I finished the Lover's knot and began the second set of hearts, I began the fern pattern again as well.

I am well into the second celtic knot section, although you can’t see it from this angle. But I still have miles to go before I sleep (my apologies to the spirit of R.F.), and I have yet to figure out what I’m going to do about the ends.

I went shopping.

Sheep Street had a big sale this weekend.

Got this

…and this

All cotton. I have no idea what I’m going to do with it. So much fun, though, to hang out at the LYS with all the other fiber junkies. Nancy has a big triangular loom hanging on the wall. This is my latest lust, a triangular loom, which is odd given the weaving normally holds no attraction for me at all. But the triangular loom is so….fundamental and unfussy...and perfect for shawls. I’ve just got to try it.

2003-09-04T09:41:00.000-05:00

Respite

That camp-out last weekend was so much fun that I forgot to mention that it rained, and occasionally poured, the entire time. Soggy goodness. Hot and uber-humid. Ick. The reason I mention this now is that the weather has changed to glorious pre-fall coolness. And last night a fog rose off the saturated ground while the sun set.

(sigh)

2003-09-03T10:46:00.000-05:00

Do I Really Need Flowers?

Of course I need flowers in my life, but do I really need them to get married? I have this obstinate, almost obsessive, need to understand each and every tradition involved in this marriage thing. If I don't understand it, or if I do understand it and still find it silly, I refuse to play along. So, needless to say, most of the traditions are out the window. Then my mom called me last week and informed me that she would need a wrist corsage because a pinned one would ruin her silk dress.

Huh?

I remind myself, however, this is the same woman who asked me who would be "giving" me away since my dad is no longer here to do so. I asked her if she seriously thought I would permit the notion of anyone "giving" me to anyone else to entertain my thoughts for even a moment? She laughed at that, so maybe she's just yanking my chain with this one, too.

The closer I get to the event, the more "traditions" come up that sound suspiciously more like marketing tactics than meaningful ritual. But I'm not sure! And I can't do them if I don't research them! And I don't have much more time to research! This past weekend, at the camp out, I was asked a couple of times what my "colors" were. COLORS???? Well, I'm white with brown hair and green eyes?

Just how out of touch with reality am I? NOOO, DON'T ANSWER THAT! It's rhetorical.

And I don't want to know, besides.

************

I do highly recommend making a wedding shawl if you are inclined to wed yourself in the future. It is possibly the only thing that is keeping me sane. It has become very ritualistic for me lately, and is turning into this long river of lace that tumbles down my lap every time I pick it up. Just lovely. The first two hours of every morning I spend knitting in bed, listening to NPR, and drinking the pot of coffee Mr. S brings me before he goes to work.

Eh. Could be worse (she admits grudgingly).

2003-09-02T11:02:00.000-05:00

Angst and Marriage (or why we should've just friggin' eloped)

My Labor Day weekend was spent at an annual camp-out with my fiance's family. His grandmother, a true matriarch if ever there was one, presides over this every year on her 200 acre spread up in the hills. I have been *warmly* welcomed into this family, which contrasts greatly with the his ex-wife's family.

If you are familiar with the lives of widowers, then you know that marrying one means also accepting a certain amount of tragedy into your life. Since there are children from this previous marriage, there is by necessity another family, specifically, another set of grandparents, that come with the package. As a rule, this particular branch of a widower's family is dead set against said widower ever finding happiness with another woman, let alone marrying her.

This family is no exception. "Her" side despise the idea of me (the can't despise me because they haven't taken the time to know me), and make no secret of it to us, or, unhappily, the children. I'm not suggesting that they don't have reason to be miserable. They do. They lost a child to tragic circumstances, something I can't imagine. I'm just illustrating my point of view here because that's the one I'm most interested in right now.

This is why it is particularly nice that "his" side of the family is so great to me. They are warm, generous, sweet, etc., etc. and *very* excited about the wedding.

The Wedding. Eek. We are down to just over 5 weeks and There Is So Much Left To Do. I have decided that there is no way I'll have time to put an edging on my shawl, but I've also decided that it'll work that way (I better decide that....I don't have much choice). It is turning out to be huge, and it will be even bigger once I block it.

So, in a weak effort to be more positive, I offer the following images of where I'm getting married:

Oh, wait, that's not it. That's where we're dancing after the ceremony. Turn around and look behind you, at the creek with the little staging area.

THIS is where we're getting married.

Now, someone pass me the prozac, please?

2003-08-28T09:47:00.000-05:00

Hey, I'm Trying Avoid Real Life Here! Do You Mind???

I am haunted by Bonne Marie's entry today. I can't get it out of my mind. Not just the finding-your-life-in-real-danger situation, but the watching of dead bodies getting wheeled by in a surreal moment of mortality. As awful of a day as it was for her, I'm glad she wrote it down while it was still fresh. It brought the experience to life for me, and, in spite of the title here, this is the second most important reason I read blogs (you know what the first is). I appreciate the intensity and awfulness of it.

Speaking of which....

I am past the half-way mark on my wedding shawl. Here is a bit of it, maybe about 1/3 of what I've got:

I'm beginning to have serious doubts about getting it finished in time. I can do the main part, certainly, but the edging is going to be slow going. Well, I might just get married is an incomplete shawl. I just have to keep reminding myself that this is the "little" stuff....like the date on the invitation. (what's the big stuff, you ask?.....let's not go there right now...)

2003-08-24T19:03:00.000-05:00

Does it get easier?

The first time I escaped from Los Angeles I was 25, single, and a mom. I was a waitress at the time, at a fairly nice tea room in a fairly nice department store, making good tips and getting by. I knew quite a few other single moms who had supported themselves and their children for many years this way. They were all great women, amazingly resilient. But I didn’t want that future for me and my son, in part because I’m because I’m not particularly resilient. I get sick a lot and tire easily. Plus, I was terribly bored, so I decided to get my GED and try out college. I left LA and moved to Santa Cruz. It turned out that UC Santa Cruz was a true single-mom’s heaven. They had great subsidized housing, and even better subsidized day-care. The head teacher at the day care center was this earth-mother, Sandy. I can’t say enough great things about this woman….she was calm, organized, understood the kids in her care at a deep level (although this was true of all the teachers at the center), and projected an incredible sense of safety all around her. Any sign of trouble, all she had to do was walk into a room, and everything magically calmed down, everyone knew it was going to be all right, no matter what it was.

Sandy, too, was a single mother. Her daughter was a teenager back then, and Sandy herself was only in her mid-thirties. I say “only” because she really did seem to possess the wisdom of ages. Sandy was very independent. She had raised her daughter along since she was a baby, she lived in a rural area, chopped her own wood, made her own way, in every way. No one ever thought of her as anything but complete. So it was a little surprising to find out, one day towards the end of my stay at UCSC, that she was moving in with a man and planning to get married. It was surprising only because it seemed to me that she just didn’t need a man, which was terribly naïve and unkind of me, in retrospect, and I know this because similar things have been said to me and it always hurt my feelings (“why,” I would think, “do you think I have no need for companionship??”).

Then as I was getting ready to move back to LA (not that I wanted to, but that’s another story), Sandy confided to me that she wasn’t sure the relationship was going to work out. She was afraid that living alone for 13 years was too long, and she might be able to adapt to living with another person. This was very sad news indeed because, after all, if Sandy couldn’t make the adjustment, who could?

I never did find out what happened. But our last conversation stayed with me all these years. Of course, after 20 years of living on your own, you do get used to it and, eventually, really get comfortable with it. My life was carefully crafted for my maximum comfort and I was grateful that I would never have to deal with that kind of adjustment. Yes, hmmm. Well, you know, life happens, and now I’m trying to adapt to a cooperative living style at an age no one should.

Can I do it? Sometimes I wish I had a divorce in my past. At least then I’d have an idea what pitfalls to avoid. But then, no one ever told me it would be easy.

So why do I keep thinking it should be?

2003-08-19T20:47:00.000-05:00

Erf.

I had to spend two days in Louisville (Louvulle?) for work. It's actually a lovely city, and they have a killer fabric store. These days I find it much harder to find a good fabric store than yarn store, and I am in need of such a place because I've decided, against all common sense, to make my wedding dress. In that respect, the trip was a wild success and I will post pictures of that success tomorrow.

2003-08-11T09:55:00.000-05:00

Hollywood is Sinkhole

...and it's sucking the rest of the state down with it. Sometimes I think I my native state would be better if it did just fall off the continent (assuming that were geologically possible, which, sadly, it isn't). Don't you think it would be lovely underwater monument to materialism and pretentious ineptitude? "No sir, I'm not a polititian, but I played one in a movie." "Why, I don't *really* know how to knit, but it's *the* thing to do these days. I wouldn't be caught dead without my designer bag and a ball of $200 cashmere to fondle in public." Please god(dess), when California does finally implode in on itself, just be sure that Arnold and Daryl get sucked in first.

2003-08-07T10:18:00.000-05:00

Maus! I think it might work!

It is becoming increasingly clear to me that only the very brave or the very foolish attempt to acquire fine lace-weight yarn on last-minute basis. In case there is any question left in your mind at this point, I fall into the latter category. My LYS has done some magic for me, though, and might be able to aquire some beautiful silk. It is heavier than I had wanted...more like fingering weight....but so scrumptous. I'll find out today if they'll be able to get it. The store in question, by the way, is Sheep Street Fibers, Inc -- a noble and truly committed place if ever there was one. Honestly, Nancy-the-owner carries a mind-boggling selection of lucious yarns, and she and all her assistants are almost too good to be true. If you bring in a project, they get just as excited as if it were their own. They do it all...knit, spin, weave, crochet. I love this place.

There are a couple of other awesome places around here, too, but I'll save gushing over them for another day.

The thing is, it is entirely possible I can't get this silk, and even if I do, I might decide that it just isn't lightweight enough for this. With that in mind, I took Maus's suggestion and soaked my poor blotchy shawl-in-progress in a lemon juice solution and then laid it out, juice and all, in the sun until it dried. Well, I'll be damned if it didn't bleach out a bit. There are still variations in the color, but they are much reduced. So much in fact, that it's possible that only the bride and groom will really notice, although I still have to convince myself of this for reals.

Crochet

Earlier this week there was a glut of blog entries about crochet. Mostly about how hard, painful, and ugly it is. Nevertheless, people seem to want to learn how to do, and how to do something not-too-ugly with it. I am once again inspired to start posting more crochet stuff. I have begun reorganizing this site in preparation of that....maybe, just maybe, I'll get those crochet pages/links up before the next ice age.....

2003-08-04T10:14:00.000-05:00

Just When I Though I Was Getting the Hang of Life...

The phone rang at some ungodly hour yesterday morning....like 8 am or something. In the process of groping for the phone, I knocked a full glass of water all over the bed, completely soaking it and making a return to sleep unlikely. It was Mr. S's grandmother, chiding me for being asleep still, and informing me that our lovely wedding invitation had arrived and that there was a mistake on it. The date is wrong. I checked. She's right. It's wrong. Oh crap.

What else? I decided early on that I wasn't going to sweat the little things, as it were, over this wedding. Got the date on the invitations wrong? No problem, just get on the horn and call all of our guests and correct it. Shawl yarn arrives in the wrong color? I can handle it! But wait, there's more! Looky here:

My shawl is blotchy. What? You can't see it? Well trust me, it is. I looks vaguely like tea stains. Big hunking stripes of tea stain. I noticed this as I was working on it outside yesterday. In the sunlight I realized I wasn't working with a solid color of OFF-white, but rather a varigated OFF-white that ranges from almost-white to almost-yellow. In my ongoing effort to not sweat the little things, I decided that THIS IS NOT A LITTLE THING. But damn, I'm running out of time, and not exactly a speedy knitter either. So I emailed the vendor and asked for a hank of white yarn to replace it. Quickly. I'm not hopeful, though, as she has a bad habit of not answering either her emails or phone for weeks at a time.

In the end, I think I'll be make some emergency trips to my LYS's, which I should be doing anyways. Unlike Boca, where there wasn't a strand of yarn to be had for hundreds of miles, there are THREE excellent vendors here. I'm sure at least one of them can help save me.

{sigh} It's Monday.

2003-08-01T13:09:00.000-05:00
Fair Report
Different counties seem to have different personalities. The last fair on our itinerary was in a particularly .... uh, conservative county. That is, conservative in a rabid-right-wing-uber-religious (radical christians, muslims, or whatever, take your pick, they all come around the being the same thing when they get far enough out on the brain-frying fringes)-racist-sexist-everything-ist sort of way. Well, I suppose there had to be some drawback to living in the country. Lots of scary stuff at this fair: anti-abortionist, militia, and creationist folks (and also the folks who are, inexplicibly, obsessed with directing the the most minute details of our private lives. But they aren't even worth mentioning here...that gets saved for another rant).

They have an interesting command of adjectives, these folks, as, I suppose, anyone with an agenda does. The creationists were the most angry, it seemed, posing some interesting arguments about how, if evolution were true, then we would be seeing organisms "in transition" instead of animals perfectly adapted for their environments, as we see now. When I say these are interesting arguments, I mean that in the most cynical sort of way. If you know anything about evolution theory, then you are still trying to pick your dropped jaw up off the desk over that one. I am a scientist. I am therefore, biased. Biased in a very well-read, logical, empirical sort of way. I am trying to train myself not to fly off the handle when faced with these bass-akward arguments. The problem with being an academic, in an academic setting, is that you tend associate with people who are as smart as you, and whose thinking is as disciplined and logical as your own. Most people are pretty stupid, though, or worse, actually desire to be led through life by the nose. Trying to see the world through stupid-colored lenses takes more patience than I normally have.

All of this fun has seriously cut into my knitting time. But I've made a little progress:

Yes, I know, the hearts still look silly. But it's my silly design, and I love it.

2003-07-30T14:09:00.000-05:00

We're All Hoosiers Now

We’re going to fairs this week. Real country fairs. At the risk of pounding this “city girl, country boy” theme to death, it really is a hoot for me. The Los Angeles County fair was the only one I’d ever been to before, and it really is just a huge commercial venture. These little county fairs are so….accessible. Local people, local animals, local food….you name it. Mr. S. ran into someone he knew every 10 steps. We are all thinking about entering something in the competitions next year. I have so many things I could have entered this year! After looking over the knitting and crochet entries, I think I definitely could be a contender. I think it would be fun to spin up my own yarn and make something just for next year’s fair.

In the needlecraft section, my Mr. S. picked up a pair of handknit socks and oooh’d and aaaah’d over them for quite a while. Hint, hint, I suppose. I’ve never made socks (although some of my best friends do….) – guess it’s time to think about starting. Maybe after I get over this shawl fetish I’ve got going on right now…..

2003-07-29T12:31:00.000-05:00

And just for fun

Sweetie took this picture of me, he calls it my Bullwinkle picture.

I just love the way it resembles my pixel-punk chick with the hints of purple still in my hair and ever-present scowl. I think the guys who made Bullwinkle must have had access to some really good drugs. That beginning scene with him and Rocky (Rocket J. Squirrel!) coming up through the soil and sprouting with the sunflowers was just too weird to explain any other way. It scared me a little as a kid. And wasn't there some knitting going on during that scene? I might be having flashbacks myself, for all I know, but I could *swear* that Rocky was knitting in that underground scene.

What does it all mean?

Speaking of knitting....

I've made a little progress, in between crises, on the kimono lace

and on this as well:

I am twisting the stitches above each yarn-over and I'm very happy with the way it is coming out. The hearts are a new little addition...more cutesy that I normally care for, but what with this being for my wedding and all that, I just threw caution to the wind. After all, what is more reckless than getting married after 40 anyways?

And did you know that this is what broccoli looks like when it flowers?

It was news to me....

2003-07-23T07:50:00.000-05:00

Life intervenes

I put off writing because I don't have pictures, which in retrospect, is not a strong argument for not writing because Stuff is happening. For example:

1. Growing pains. Becoming a step-parent is everything it's cracked up to be. I still have it better than most WOW's (wives of widowers) I think, because my husband-to-be is willing and able to really *really* talk. We've worked out more "issues" in the past six months than my folks did in over 40 years of marriage. But I think it took several years off our lives.

2. Knitting. The yarn for my wedding shawl arrived and it's not white. I've been ordering from this one place (really hate to diss anyone by name on the internet, but its tempting) lately and I guess I'm just a glutton for punishment. Her handpainted yarns are just beautiful, but this was mill-dyed stuff. It sure *looked* white on the computer monitor, and there was an off-white available, but I ordered WHITE. Well, I know all about color and computer monitors and all that, but I just felt so safe ordering WHITE. I should have asked. But she seems somewhat fickle about answering email, and the time lags between ordering and receiving are unpredictable at best. I'm seriously running out of time, so I guess my wedding shawl is going to be a little off-white. I'll live.

And I will order from her again, but never, ever, when time is an issue.

Making some progress on both landscape and kimono shawls, although not what I'd like given 1) above. And the progress will probably come to a screeching halt given the arrival of 2) above.

3. Work. Well, the jobs have stopped rolling in, but I got a tentative offer for a position at the university, so that might be nice. More about that in the next few weeks.

4. Weather. Cripes! I'll just say this: Thank the powers that be that we have a basement! And yes, I still prefer it to Florida.

5. I'm getting married (figured that out, have you?). That is, I'm getting married IF I get these *)(^*&^ invitations in the mail this week!

I'll work on getting those pictures......

2003-07-11T14:00:00.000-05:00

It's been a WEEK already!?!?

I have an excuse. I've been sick. Not real sick, but sick enough that all I could handle at the computer was a couple hours a day to work with no time left over to blog. To write blog. Always time to read blog. There is something about a summer cold, especially a nasty one like this, that seems like a kind of moral failing. I feel guilty about it.

However, I long since left my Catholic school days behind, so guilt is short lived. I hope everyone else is well!! It was a good time, weather-wise, to be sick as it was impossible to get out during this volley of storms we've been having. Sweetie is just certain that all his tomatoes have drowned.

I decided to make the Kimono Shawl from Cheryl Oberle's book with the red silk/wool I've been playing with. No pictures yet, but you know how unblocked lace looks anyways. Very unimpressive. I'm recharting my wedding shawl one LAST time and will get started on it with meaning any day now. Any day now. Hopefully I'll have a lot more to say about it next week.

2003-07-04T12:24:00.000-05:00

Ok, something a little less depressing....so to speak

I gave the New Moon shawl away to a friend who is relocating to Vermont. I wanted to give her something special, and since she is an artist, it was sure bet that she'd appreciate my handmade prototype. It needed something, though. So I went to one of the local bead stores, stocked up, and began adding an assortment of wonderful beads to the fringe (including a few bells). Since "kludge" is practically my middle name, I was pulling the yarn through the beads with a small crochet hook, which was fine, until I tried to do it with some of the larger beads. The crochet hook is tiny on the end, but it quickly widens and so the hook would only go about halfway through the bigger beads, if that. I turned to my sweetie and whined, "I need a piece of wire to twist into a beading needle." He obediently disappeared down the stairs to his workshop and returned about 10 minutes later with this: The picture doesn't do it justice. It is a tiny (about 1.5 inches long) little hand-turned handle with a piece of wire looped through it, like an old-fashioned needle threader. And it worked perfectly. See? This is why I call him sweetie.

Depressing things

Back to my previous post. This whole unstrung teenager thing is much on my mind. While I tend to agree that we should be able to be happier with who we are with all our variances and uniqueness (is that a word?), but we live in a highly intolerant world. Everything from churches to billboards to parents to tv are trying to dictate the terms of our lives. Don't smoke, don't eat meat, don't be homosexual, be very sexual, abstain from sex, makes lots of money, be very productive, be fun, be thin, don't swear, give lots of money to the church.....etc., etc., etc...... So how on earth is anyone going to be happy with who they are? No one is capable is living up our cultural standards, and I suspect it is the stay-at-home-moms and career women who chose not to have kids who are the first ones to be figuring this is out and making peace with it. Of course, I am neither of these things, so I take antidepressents so I won't despair about my failure as human being.

But I digress. What about the teenagers who are still finding their way? I *could* argue that sheer empathy drives me to beg her father to seek out help for her...but that would less than fully honest. What is fully honest is that it inconveniences me that she mopes and sulks around and screams at her father when he asks her what is wrong. It annoys me.

[another big sigh]

I need to knit.

2003-07-04T10:00:00.000-05:00
Confessions

I am moved this morning by Pioneer Melissa's blog entry for yesterday, the Wayne Muller quote in particular. I fully subscribe to this philosophy, that much psychotherapy begins with the assumption that we are fundamentally flawed. But, at the end of the first paragraph, he says, "We are still not accepting ourselves unconditionally, just as we are in this moment, with a full and joyful heart. " But what if our heart is not full and joyful? Amongst our collection of teenagers, there is one 16 year old who is particularly joyless. I am very much understating the case here. I have rarely seen this depth of sheer misery in anyone since yours truly wast that age. She has reason to be, she lost her mother (I am marrying a widower). But her father tells me she has always been this way and he doesn't think she can be helped because it is just a part of who she is. I argue that he should consider counseling and/or drugs and he resists for a number of mostly personal reasons.

Who am I to insist that she is flawed?

Say Hello to My Leeetle Friend

2003-07-02T09:50:00.000-05:00

This is Buddy. Of all my sweetie's animals, he is my favorite. Sweet disposition, well trained, running happily through the woods, wading in mud puddles, picking up ticks, chewing on carrion...what a life. Ick. But how can you resist that mug? Well, I manage. The irony is that here I am, lifelong city girl, finally finding happiness in the country after 20 some odd years of searching, and I'm allergic to it. I'm allergic the entire state of Indiana. I know, I got tested. It is easier to list the things I'm NOT allergic to: Maple trees, corn, cows and horses. That means every other living thing, indoors and out, turns me into a wheezing, whining, rather unattractive pile o' snot.

[big sigh]

So now my ever-lovin' love has his kids dusting and vaccuming on a daily basis, has restricted his critters to outside living, and seriously stresses over every single sneeze. I see allergy shots in my future.

2003-06-27T09:06:00.000-05:00
I'm getting a little concerned about my lack of progress in the realm of fibery stuff. Time seems in much shorter supply with so many more people in the house. Why is that? I remember that when I moved to Florida I had all my unpacking done in two weeks flat. I brought much less with me here, but it is taking soooo long to get it all put away. I realize this is because I am not working with an empty apartment, but with an already pretty full house which means I have to clean out and organize before I put away, but still! I need to knit!

My sweetie's grandma came over for dinner this weekend and I showed her all my original shawls (over there --->) and she is strongly encouraging me to sell the patterns. So. As soon as I get settled in, and get caught up on all my current jobs, which are rolling in at an alarming rate (not that I don't appreciate the work, because I do, but, at the risk of being redundant, I'M NOT UNPACKED YET!), I'm going to finish writing those babies up! Right.

2003-06-19T10:55:00.000-05:00

Send Money

Our proposal was accepted, so I have a job to work on now. Drat.

Landscape Shawl

I decided to use a skein of Angel Hair from Josyln's that I had lying around. It is the colorway "Plumes" -- lovely, yes? So this is the aforementioned mindless project. As for my not-so-mindless project, the lace I'm designing has decided it wanted to try out a new look, so the current swatch is happening in a merino-silk lace weight:

I have another secret project project in mind for this yarn, but I have so much of it that there is plenty for me practice with also. I think this is the kind of yarn I will eventually use for my wedding shawl. If I ever figure out the design.... I am beginnining to get discouraged. But...help is on the way. I was at Sheep Street the other day and I'm sure there is someone there who will be able to point me in a more fruitful direction.

2003-06-16T08:54:00.000-05:00

The Swamps of Indiana

It has rained every day since my return. Indiana is returning to its swampy ways, the ground is completely saturated, the crops are just floating on the surface and my sweetie is worried that the tomatoes are going to drown. We went *out* Saturday night to a little blues club up near Indy. On our way into town we passed a farm with a large section of truly reclaimed swamp. Right in the middle of all those soybeans was a patch of cattails and other swampy stuff. Very cool.

I am pleased that I am learning to knit in the car, finally. For the first time in my life I am not always the one doing the driving. When we drive to Bloomington I can't knit because the road is windy and I get ..... you know. But going up to Indy twice this weekend gave me good practice time. I've started another Landscape shawl because 1) it's easy and I need at least one easy project right now and 2) I have a shawl fetish (like you didn't already know that).

[why the sam-hell is my blogger screen refreshing every 20 seconds! On Friday I had no settings or template, and now the damn thing is epileptic]

I must be far more in love than even I realized. There are four other people living in this house and not one of them understands the concept of putting things away. So far I'm taking it in stride. But, I was a single parent for 20 years and got used to a certain...order....to my life. Yes, I was raising a son, but he's anally retentive, or at least he was as a child. He is a normal sub-adult male now, but he has his own apartment to trash now. My point being that this is quite the adjustment for me. I must be VERY much in love.

I have more to say, but today's rain is looking like a real storm with thunder and lightening and all that. So gotta uplug the computer. More later.

2003-06-12T09:10:00.000-05:00

The Bad Dream.

Ok, I’m back in Indiana. The move couldn’t have been any easier, it was clearly meant to be. In fact, it gets surreal sometimes. I went back to my old workplace yesterday to see about a contract job. While I was waiting for the elevator a couple of other folks where engaging in a popular local topic of discussion: the closing of local manufacturing businesses. There are more closings than factories, as far as I can tell. So these two are going on, turn to me and nod, continue with their conversation and making the occasional comment to include me in the conversation. Nice people. But this is weird because this is the first I’ve seen of them in since I left for Florida six months ago. After the elevator arrived, my business partner and I got on and I turned to him and commented on the general weirdness of the situation, saying something about how one can walk out of a place, be gone for six months, then return and no one seems to know the difference. His response: “I think you’re eventually going to find that Florida was all just a terrible dream….”

Knitting…..

The new Knitty is FANTASTIC! Aside from the great-as-always patterns, the articles are worth their weight in …. silk? (I never did quite get how one quantifies one’s worth-in-weight). Ms. Burn’s treatise of short-row shaping for curvy shapes is …. useful information!! Ms. Boyd’s thoughtful meditation on the evolution of knitting project (and life) is just sheer pleasure to read. All this for free??? I continue to be humbled by the combined talent and commitment of this endeavor.

I haven't been able to do any substantial amount of knitting in a while and it is clearly taking its toll on me. My sweetie, with whom I now live, finally insisted that I stop unpacking boxes for a while, or more specifically, fretting about unpacking boxes, and knit. Trying to merge two complete households is a nearly hopeless, and totally thankless, task. As I scrub out cabinets and sort out artifacts that date back to the Jurassic period, I hear a pretty continuous chorus of "you're not throwing THAT away, are you?" -- oh, I don't think I mentioned that along with the beautiful countryside and clean air and goats and dogs and roosters and Man With Tractor, I have also acquired three teenagers. That makes four of the creatures between the two of us. Yes, I have possibly taken complete leave of my senses. But I digress.... I did finally sit a bit yesterday and finish my latest test swatch, which was in itself heavenly and calming and all the wonderful things knitting is, only to be frustrated with the points on the Celtic knot and the lettering I’m trying to insert. BUT…Ms. Jean Miles kindly referred me to an article in piecework magazine with a chart for a lace alphabet. The magazine arrived the other day it also includes the fix I need for the knots. So…I think I need to wind a new hank of yarn and begin, again.

We’re getting married in October. I’ve got to stop swatching and get to making sometime soon.

Crochet….

As I catch up on my blog reading, I am interested to read several comments on the general icki-ness of crochet, or more specifically, of the general perception of the general icki-ness crochet. Ms. Petrovski of Nake-id Knits has a perfect description, and indeed a picture of what she calls “Barbie-head-on-a tolietroll.” Since I’m a crocheter from way back, and rather like it, I’ve given a little thought to the knit-crochet dichotomy. In the most recent issue of Chain Link, a Crochet Guild of America (GCOA) newsletter, there is a profile on Nancy Brown. Ms. Brown feels like one of the problems with crochet’s bad rap (other than the obvious problem of “Barbie-head-on-a tolietroll”) is that crochet seems to be associated with crappy yarn (my words, not hers). According to the profile (written by Lana Bennett):

"….Knitters….expect a higher level of quality that brings knitting to a higher level as well. All that is needed, in Nancy’s estimation, is the same kind of campaign for crocheters. Attach the word “crochet” to fine quality yarns and voila!, crocheters too will be raised to higher level."

The implication here is that crocheters are so stupid as to be unable to buy yarn that has the words “hand-knitting” printed on the label. Whether or not this is true is open to debate. But I have noticed, anecdotally, that many crocheted items are made with cheap synthetic yarn, and many crochet patterns call for cheap synthetic yarn. One reason for this might economic. Any crocheted item uses more yarn than an equivalent knitted item, so one must purchase more yarn to make the crocheted item. But I’m not sure the difference between the two is enough to really break the bank. It has also been my observation (anecdotal evidence, again, from the web, a biased sample if ever there was one), that crocheters are, for the most part, but with some significant exceptions, less confident and articulate than knitters. There is almost a cultural hierarchy between the two crafts. My own mom, who crochets, told me that she always thought of knitting as “a higher class” than crochet. My future step-mother-in-law told me that she found knitting too complicated, but she likes to crochet.

What is this??? It really does almost make it sound like Ms. Brown’s thesis has some substance to it.

And in truth, I find most crochet patterns to be pretty horrendous things, particularly the little kitsch crap like towel-toppers and the above “Barbie-head-on-a tolietrolls.” Scary stuff. And lately, Crochet! Magazine has really embodied the worst of it with patterns that aren’t worth the paper they’re printed on (Of course there are always exceptions. Jenny King designs *adorable* bathing suits, and Tosca Mark’s lace stole a while back was breathtaking….and I have heard that Crochet Fantasy magazine is printing better patterns these days…).

My theory (and you knew I had one, didn’t you?) is that crocheters fail to fully appreciate the inherent benefits of crochet. It ISN’T knitting, nor should it try to be. If you want a knit top, then knit a frickin’ top. Don’t try to crochet something that “drapes and looks like knit.” It doesn’t, and it never will. Crochet is thick and knotty, which is why Jenny King can design bathing suits with it….it holds up to the job. The X-back tank top that I’m working on is all single-crochet specifically because I wanted a substantial fabric. Stylin’, cool things can be made from crochet, but you have to respect the stitch. I am so inspired by Knitty. I would love so much to kick start this poor maligned craft, or as Nake-id Knits puts it….give it a major image overhaul. Maybe I should build a cool, hip crochet web-zine to post my crochet patterns on …..hmmmm.

2003-05-29T19:02:00.000-05:00
I'll be back....

2003-05-28T10:58:00.000-05:00

Are we there yet?

It doesn't look like I'll be able to get this next swatch off the needles and blocked before I have to break down the 'puter tomorrow, so here is what it looks like now (posed oh-so-cleverly on a packing box):

I'm already thinking that I'd like to change the way I'm making the border. BUT...I am still damned determined to use that fern lace pattern, I don't care what anyone on the knit lists say. [What I asked was *how* I could make it work, not *if* it would work. Nothing like a little encouragement].

Now for something completely different

A picture of where I'm moving...my new backyard! And yes, it includes the gentleman on the tractor!

...and what I'm leaving:

Ok, I'll admit, it is a matter of taste. I just don't happen to care much for condo-living in subtropical suburbs, although it does photograph well. I'm jones'n for the open space. And the man on the tractor.

2003-05-24T18:42:00.000-05:00
Final Days

7 days and counting. I suppose my entries are going to be limited to general stress about how I'm not packed yet. But it is starting to feel real, finally. I'll be back in my own little slice o' heaven in no time. But until then, I'm afraid I won't have anything substantive or particularly interesting to say. . .although I do have another swatch almost finished. Pictures soon.

There is some real news. For those of you who do know Sebastian personally, he is not well. It looks like end stage renal failure. The boy is flying out to see him this week, but I don't think he has much longer in this world. I think it is appropriate to re-post the famous 10-year picture. Enjoy.

2003-05-22T12:35:00.000-05:00
Am I *supposed* to have a cat?

I'm seeing, or reading, a lot about the mouse-a-long from Wendy's site and feel left out. Actually, I do sort of have a cat. My son has a cat, Sebastian, and he (the cat) lived with us until a year and a half ago. Then he moved to California. Here is the story:

My dad was very ill, having been diagnosed with ALS (Amyotrophic Lateral Sclerosis or Lou Gehrig's Disease). He had always been very fond of Seb. When I say "very fond" I am understating quite a bit. My dad was one of those people who actually communicated with animals and often got along better with them than with people. He adored our cat and missed him terribly when we moved to Indiana. As we preparing to visit my folks for the holidays, a year and a half ago, it occured to me that my dad was too weak to travel would never see Sebastian again. So we took Sebastian to him. At that time the disease had weakened him considerably, but my dad could still walk and move around on his own. He was THRILLED to see Sebastian and Sebastian, in turn, performed admirably. He did not appear to be traumatized from the long flight, and he obediently went to my dad sat on his lap. My dad passed away right after the holidays, having been spared the worst of the disease. We decided to leave Seb with my mom for a while. This worked out well because I was moving who-knew-where sometime in the near future, and my son would be moving into the dorms at IU. So Seb has been hanging out in Sunny CA since then.

And so, I am pleased to present.........Sebastian!

and I just might knit him one them there mousies after all.

2003-05-21T08:33:00.000-05:00

Progress report.

Previous swatch on left, new one on right (minus the edging). It's getting better, but I'm still not sure about the filler I put between the fern repeats. But it might have to wait until I can consult the Experts -- after I move.

2003-05-19T20:04:00.000-05:00
No packing today, BUT...the w***ing shawl is re-charted and I'm swatching away again. My rank as Novice Knitter is really showing here, given that I'll probably use as much yarn to do all these swatches as ends up in the final product. I've gotten a few useful suggestions from the Lace Knitting List, so I'm going to incorporate some of those and see if things improve.

Film at 11.

2003-05-18T14:52:00.000-05:00
I'm supposed to be packing. Guess what I'm doing instead?

You Have the Power to Turn Things to Stone!

What's Your Magic Power?
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2003-05-17T13:24:00.000-05:00
Rant

From the NY Times Study Finds No Sign That Testing Deters Students' Drug Use:

"Such tests do not violate the Fourth Amendment safeguards against unreasonable searches and seizures, the Supreme Court has ruled, because children have limited expectations of privacy, the tests are not overly intrusive and because they are likely to deter substance abuse. Writing for the court in 1995, Justice Antonin Scalia described the "efficacy of this means for addressing the problem" of student drug use as "self-evident." "

One of the things that makes me crazy in this life is how we tolerate, even encourage, treatment towards children that are considered rude, intrusive, and even illegal when directed towards adults. If I were told that I have a limited expectation of privacy, that forced seizure of my bodily fluids in not overly intrusive because it is an effective deterrent to drug abuse, in spite of the fact that there exists NO empirical evidence to support such a claim....I would most certainly be driven to drugs.

I should point out that this article to which I refer describes a very large, highly reliable, longitudinal study in which they found absolutely no differences in rates of drug use between students in schools that had drug testing programs versus those that don't. The rates of use between the two populations of schools was statistically identical.

But how many of you had to pee in cup just to play on the softball team or debate club just to assuage some administrator/politician/parent's guilt over their poor parenting skills???

2003-05-16T22:26:00.000-05:00

What's next?

I offer the following picture of what remains of my living room as proof that I really am moving:

Not that anyone has expressed doubt. But it does help me to justify the time I spend on this:

This is just the swatch, riddled with errors, but it does show some promise. The fern leaf border is too tight and is bunching up the rest. I have to figure out some way to compensate. Ideas, anyone? Email me