Golly.

I haven't made a post in two weeks, but it feels like an eternity. Things are good here. I can't believe how quickly the summer is flying by. I am getting nothing accomplished around my house, but I hope to change that shortly. I am going to start by using my basement for what it was built: to store crap that I don't want upstairs. I'll go through it later, I just want to declutter my upstairs living space and have some breathing room. I never go in my basement anyway except to clean the litter boxes, and boy I tell ya, that is a treat. I really want to begin getting rid of large things - sofas, bookcases, desks, etc. I want to reclaim the breezeway from the Barbies who have taken over. I want to tear up carpeting. I want to paint. I want to turn my house into the house I've always wanted, and I want to stop bitching about it. Sometimes I forget that I need to be proactive about making change happen in my life. I also forget that you don't need to spend a fortune to make changes. My friend Sahfi is good at redoing furniture and making it look cool, and I hope to take some cues from her.

I was exercising a lot for about a week and a half, and I need to get back into that as well. We are going to Ocean City in two weeks, and I want to try and accomplish some sort of exercise on 8 or 9 days before we leave. I also intend to go for a run on the boardwalk every day that we are down there. I can't wait. We'll also be going back to Lake George in mid-August, and this time WT will be coming with us. Yay! I think we'll be staying on the lake, and the place that (I hope) has availability has canoes and kayaks that the guests can use, so we can exercise and have fun all at once! And then it will be back to school. Dag.

My dad seems to be doing pretty well. He is building a spinning wheel. From scratch. 'Cause that's the kind of stuff my dad does. He also bought an autoharp and has been playing it every day since he got it. I am hoping he will inspire me to pick up my dulcimer and guitar and practice them. Banana and I went to visit Dad yesterday and we had a grand old time. We had creamed Spam and peas on biscuits for lunch (trust on this one, it's truly delish) and homemade lasagna and salad for din-din. A good day all around.

On the fiber front, I've been trying to get some old WIPs out of the way. For some reason, my friends find it amusing that I am knitting mohair and wool legwarmers right now. I can't imagine why they would make fun of me whilst I knit with @#$%^&* laceweight mohair. In July. In the Philadelphia suburbs, where an average summer day is about 92 degrees with 80% humidity. Makes sense to me. I am also working on a 2 x 2 rib scarf for the Banana, in pink sparkly yarn, which is just so my thing. I also need to start my Green Gable over, which I began approximately 17 million years ago and frogged because it was way big. And then I can start knitting a whole bunch of other stuff. Oh, and because I wanted a quick FO, I crocheted a fat-ass afghan and used up about 15 skeins of yarn from my stash. Woot. Because again, nothing says summer like a 20-pound afghan. Thank goodness for central air.

On a completely different note, isn't Costco remarkable? The other day, I bought a DVD/VCR player, a raincoat for Banana, socks for WT, and about four pounds of chicken. Where the hell else can you buy all that stuff in one place?? Crazy, I tell ya.

'Kay, that's it for now. If you actually made it to the end of this boring and rambling post, I commend you. Hey Anne Marie - join Ravelry. ;o)

It's been a while

Howdy. This week has gone by so quickly. I had off this week. The first few days were fun. I got to see friends, see my dad, see art, go downtown, all that good stuff. On Tuesday, the Banana commented that she had a stomachache. At about 9:30 that night, she barfed on the sofa, and so there went the rest of my spring break. Oh well. At least she is feeling better, that is by far the most important thing. And I'm also immensely grateful that we have a new washer and dryer - they were most certainly put to the test on Tuesday night, and I'm happy to say that they both passed with flying colors.

My knitting group's 3rd anniversary party was on Wednesday night, and a good time was had by all. We had brownies and cookies, door prizes, and a yarn and magazine swap. We laughed and had fun and helped each other with projects and relaxed. I do so enjoy those times together with that group of women.

Work continues on several projects. I was almost done the back of WT's vest, when I decided to hold it up to him, and lo and behold, I was knitting him a mini-dress. WT is not a mini-dress kind of guy, so I ripped way back to below the armholes and we shall try again.

I also picked up my Lacy Ribbed Bolero that I started last August. Liz finished hers in a flash, and so I decided to get going on mine for the 3rd time. It actually looks pretty good this time. I hope to finish it in the next week or so, I really have the lace pattern down.

I finished one Baby It's Cold Outside baby sweater for a friend, and need to finish the other one pronto, as Baby Miles has been born and is residing in NJ, sweaterless, as we speak. Gotta warm up that poor child, for crying out loud.

Dad made me yet another drop spindle, this one a top whorl. It's really cool. When I get it, I'll take pictures and post them. So in less than a month, Dad has made me two spindles and a niddy-noddy. And my neighbor Regina gave me a bag full of wool which I can wash and card myself! Laura Ingalls, watch out!

I am so frickin' tired I could put my head down on the keyboard and go to sleep right now. I also have a headache. I'm super fun, aren't it? I'm going to bed. Pictures later. Love youse guys.

I should be doing homework.

Oh well, tough noogies. I'm going to blog instead.

Back at the end of April I thought to myself, "You know, I'm clearly not spending enough money, and I could use some additional responsibility and headache in my daily life. How can I remedy this terrible situation?"

The answer? Why, go to the SPCA and adopt two kittens!

The kittens, or catlets as Banana refers to them, are now nine months old and wreaking havoc on my already havoc-wreaked house. Being the brainiac that I am, I thought nothing of living some lovely, expensive, delicate laceweight kid mohair lying about in the open.

Note cute cat head at bottom of pic. Also note the goddamn yarn strewn about.

Fuck.

The little jackass is back for more.

Actually, I'm fairly certain it was his brother who did it, not him. Although the catlet in the picture, Carlos, has been known to take my Koigu for a walk. And the Araucania Nature Wool. And the cheap-ass acrylic. It's great fun. Really.

Here's a super-duper secret Christmas gifty-poo for a family member of mine. I'm really happy with the way it turned out, and it was really quick to make as well. Gotta love it.

Here's a simple side-to-side double crochet afghan. I'm not so sure this will be finished in time for Christmas. Oh well. I am pleasantly surprised with this yarn. It's just acrylic, but I like the way it's working up and almost making a pattern. I was afraid it would pool in an ugly way or look too much like camouflage.

This here is My So Called Scarf. This also going to be a Christmas present for a close family friend. The yarn in person is not quite so lavender, it's more of a gray or mauve. It's really pretty, and I really like this pattern. I can see myself making more of these in the future.

Here's another ginormous afghan. I'm pretty sure this will be going to the Banana's teacher for Christmas. It's made of a thin boucle, and I'm surprised at how light it is. It's really warm and soft too, and I have a lot of this yarn, so I may have to make a blankie for myself. Maybe.

I have a lot of knitting and crocheting that I would like to do before Christmas, and I'm not so sure it's going to get done. I should be able to finish the granny-square afghan and So Called Scarf in time for the holidays, and I think I can bust out two Bainbridge Scarves if I crochet them. We shall see. I won't be knitting or crocheting or blogging much in the next week, as next Wednesday is my last class. I need to write 3 papers, make a video, and do an online technology portfolio in the next week. And work. And sleep. And take the Banana to ballet and a party. And take WT out to dinner for his birthday. And stuff.

Hahahahahahahahahahahaha

Wish me luck.

***

I am a bad knitter and crocheter. I haven't made anything for my husband or daughter! Next year is their year. My goal is to make two sweaters for each of them by this time next year. I want to make a basic pullover and a basic cardigan for the Banana, and I want to make Brooklyn Tweed's Cobblestone and LMKG's Forest Gansey for WT. I already have the yarn for all except the Forest Gansey.

Think I can do it in 12 months? I think I can. Might be time to put another ticker at the top of my blog. We'll see.

That's all for now. See ya later, alligators!

And now, on a more positive note...

Okay, so I've come to accept the ending of The Sopranos.

Progress is being made on the Crochet Crop Cardigan. I have found my rhythm with the yarn in the shell pattern, so now I can crochet for a while without wanting to burn the project. It looks really good. Another woman, who lives in Boston, also test-crocheted this sweater for Monica, and hers came out really cute. She is also a member of Ravelry and posted pictures on her page. I am looking forward to finishing mine so I can post pictures!

As soon as I am done the CCC, I'm going to return to work on the Green Gable and cast on for the Rusted Root and the Summertime Tunic. I got a generous gift certificate from the parents of the kid I work with, so I made a list of all the projects I want to make and their yarn requirements. I hope to actually buy yarn that I need for a specific project, rather than just picking stuff I like with nothing particular in mind.

My brother just moved to Phoenixville, and now lives approximately 1.5 miles from the Knitting Basket, an LYS. This does not bode well for my bank account. However, it does bode well for my stash. :o)

My last day of work was yesterday, so now I have two months off. Wooooo hoooooo! Banana and I are going to a picnic today with some of the teachers I work with, and tomorrow we'll be going to a party for friends of the family who just paid off their 30-year mortgage. On Wednesday, I'll be going to the King Tut exhibit at the Franklin Institute in Philadelphia; I'm going with WT, Dad, JoAnn, and Heather. Then we'll be dining at the Nodding Head, one of our favorite restaurants in the city. Squee! The rest of the summer will be spent by the pool, knitting and aging my skin prematurely with a beautiful tan. Ain't life good?

And now, a politically incorrect joke:

How many kids with ADHD does it take to screw in a lightbulb?


...


Wanna ride bikes?