winter must be here...

New Knitty! Booyah!

only ten more pages to write on this blasted paper...

Jody tagged me for this meme. Here are the Ye-Shall-Not-Break-Me Rules:

*link to the person who tagged you

*post the rules

*name 8 things others don't know about you

*link to 8 (give or take a few) other bloggers

(Since my mother reads this blog, I'll try not to say anything too scandalous)

1. Most people don't know that I'm ambidextrous. Sort of. I write with my right hand, but everything else, including knitting, I am a lefty. I think the reason I ended up writing with my right hand is because I saw all the other children using their right hand, and I figured that was the way I was supposed to do it. No one forced me to pick the right. I can write legibly with the other hand, but since it hasn't had the practice of my other hand it isn't as nice.

2. I begged my parents for a sibling. It didn't work, so I adopted my own.

3. I'm not fond of heights, and I hate roller coasters. That doesn't mean I won't do it, cause I don't want to miss out on the experience... but I can assure you, it won't be much fun.

4. When I was in high school I wanted to perform the part of Christine Daae on stage in the Phantom of the Opera. I still have the part memorized, even though I probably can't hit the high notes anymore.

5. It is highly unnerving to me that I've started watching college football this season, even worse, that I like it! I wonder if I'll watch it next year.

6. One of the reasons I became an English major is because I knew my parents would have approved of it as my major. As artsy majors go, it is a bit more practical then what I would have chosen, which would have been music. And that wouldn't have flown well at all.

7. I've always been a big reader, but it wasn't until I was in the seventh grade that I got a lot of positive feedback about my writing. My seventh grade English teacher, Mrs. Templin, and I exchange Christmas cards every year.

Ok, I tag...Gina, Mimi, Allison, Bel, and anyone else who reads this blog but never comments :-p

it's that time again

aaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaAAAAAaaaaaAAAAAAAAAhhhhhhHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!
@@#$%$^%&@$%&$#@!@#$%^$!!!!!!!!!

mmmm, break

I've done nothing but sleep and knit the past few days. I needed it desperately.

Have almost finished the Unoriginal Hat, would have had it done, had I not run out of yarns 9 rows left. But it looks adorable. Off to get more Arucania tomorrow and finish it off.

I'll charge my camera someday. Swear.
m.

american poetry review

"So I Know"
By Bob Hicok, one of the professors I had last spring. Who also taught him.

http://www.aprweb.org/issues/sept07/hicok.html

I really liked it.

filler

This semester is trying to kill me, and I'm not really sure when I'm going to see daylight again...

The log cabin blanket is going very well, and is helping me keep my sanity intact when I grab a quick half hour to knit on it. It covers my entire lap now, and I'll stop when I run out of yarn.

I'm on Ravelry now! Add me if you haven't already. User name is bluemorpho.

I made my first real hat, with the lovely chunky Cashmerino Aran I picked up at Mosaic. Hats are easy! I think I'm going to make the Yarn Harlot's Unoriginal Hat in the next few weeks. I <3 cables.

Just so you aren't left without anything amusing, I leave you with the Wake Up Cat.


Come on, end of the semester!
m.

across the universe

I saw it last night. And I loved every overwrought, surrealistic, awful moment of it.
It aimed for Moulin Rouge and missed... but yet somehow. I still liked it.

How could you not like this?


And the gushy, romantic girl in me sort of thrills to this:


THERE IS NOTHING WRONG WITH GUSHY, STARRY EYED ROMANCE.
And seriously, how cute is Jude?

well...

neVer forgeT, huh?

I'd say that's well nigh impossible.

Another thing that has annoyed me:
If you weren't around when a pet was acquired, or helped acquire the pet... don't ask about it after you break up with the person. It's grasping and tacky.

Especially when you liked and treated the pet better than you treated me. :-p

Has it been a fun week.

looky looky!

It's the start of a blanket, people!

Allison told me today I've been knitting wrong for the past two years! Thrilling!

Why I Knit.

This is a picture of me with my grandparents when I was four years old. My Mommaw Gross, on the right, taught me how to crochet when I was a pre-teen. Well, actually, she taught me how to make links, but when it came to turning it around and actually making something... it made no sense. Little did I know it was because of that stupid hook. Two needles make a lot more sense. She would spend hours upon hours watching TV and crocheting afghans with (God love her frugal, lived through the depression heart) Red Heart. Her cream and purple striped afghan I love dearly, and not just because she took the trouble to somewhat match the colors. (Matching was in fact optional with Mommaw). I curl under that afghan to watch tv and knit. My cat sleeps on it cause she likes the feel. I've buried my face and cried into that afghan. Because she loved me far more than any afghan is worth, but I still have it with me, even though she passed on in December of 2005.

After making blankets for Hokie Healing, I got an itch. I wanted to make one for myself. I sat on it for a few months. Figured I would get around to it eventually.

I took an unexpected detour to the yarn store today. I was looking for more gun metal grey King Tut to make a matching hat and gloves to go with my Irish Hiking Scarf of Dooooom. While I couldn't find the color I needed, I started thinking about my afghan. I picked up a few skeins of Rowan's Comfort and looked at the palette. Actually, I stared at it for heaven knows how long until Sandy and another lady in the store took it away from me and started finding stuff that actually looked good together. We looked at the Comfort, but it just wasn't the color scheme I was going for. I wanted something bright and cheerful. Sandy suggested Cascade 220. So we went to look at the colors, and we both zeroed in on the heathered skeins. So we picked out a red, an orange, a purple, a green, a gray, and a beige. While trying not to freak out about the convention I'm speaking at tomorrow (and finishing a Power Point for it tonight, yikes) I cast on, in the Log Cabin pattern. Voila. All is right with the world. It's simple, it's easy, and I'm going to adore it.

My knitting inspiration has returned.
Pictures to follow.

someday...

i'll visit Rome and recreate Roman Holiday.

Hee hee.

Yo mama's so mentally disturbed, if depression were pastrami, anxiety mustard, and obsessive-compulsive disorder lettuce, she could eat her mental problems as a pretty good sandwich. Only one problem, though: no bread.

Some creative editing and that could describe a few people :-p
Get more here:
http://www.portraitofyomama.com/fieldnotes.html

heh.
m.

My favorite picture of the day

My favorite picture of the day
Originally uploaded by adnarim28

I went to a football game! And had fun. And it didn't suck.
Woo.

Why is it that....

When the cat feels the need to chase yarn all over the living room, she doesn't pick the cheap Sugar and Cream ($1.25 a skein) I picked up to make dishcloths, but instead picks my gorgeous, fourteen dollar a skein bamboo sock yarn? Why? Oh why? At least it was the smaller ball and not the big one, or I'd be tempted to drop her off and give her a new life at the local Chinese restaurant.

So, I managed to score tickets to today's home game, huzzah. I've made the executive decision to not take knitting. 45 dollars for a ticket! Highway robbery! However, I have a lovely orange VT shirt (purchased yesterday) and just because I am a HUGE geek, I also bought matching chandelier earrings with maroon and orange beads. I am gonna do this sucker up, cause who knows when I'll go to a game again. And you can't say I do anything by halves.

You Know You Want to Come With Me!

So while I was looking around The Internet this morning, I ran across some tour dates for the New Pornographers. Their show in DC is already sold out (and sadly, so is Rilo Kiley's), however, tickets are still available for their show in Asheville, NC at the Orange Peel. Asheville is about a three and a half hour drive from Blacksburg (four hours from Roanoke), and tickets are 20 bucks, which is quite a steal. The show is on October 28th, which is a Sunday.

So, my fellow concert going brethren... who wants to go with me? I'd be more than willing to drive/split gas and hotel (if needed) costs.

Just in case you need more convincing, here's the website for the venue:
http://www.theorangepeel.net/

And here is The New Pornographers performing the single from the album they just released on Letterman:


And here's one of my favorite songs by them:


Mimi, could you see that this gets passed along to Cat or Elinor or anyone else who might be interested?

soooo...

I've decided that the phrase, "it seemed like a good idea at the time" can apply to far more parts of my life than I'm really comfortable with.

ooooh well.

links and video and concerts OH MY.

Cause you know that's pretty much what I'm good for.

Class has been nuts lately, and I should definitely be in bed right now, but I'm working on a coming down from a concert high. And I need a shower cause wooo ee, I stink.

Concert for VT was wonderful and I had so much fun. Back in my halcyon days of undergrad, I went through a Dave Matthews phase (and who didn't, really?). While I haven't been interested in the band for a few years, I went for the 19 year old who would have done anything to see Dave live. :)

Here's the set list.
http://road.davematthewsband.com/SetlistsDir/setlist.asp

He played the one song I would have been greatly disappointed if he hadn't played ("Crush") and a whole bunch of others I was really happy to hear live.

John Mayer wasn't as much of a douchebag as he was back when I saw him in '01/02 (sorry Gina, but it's the truth, he sort of was, and it was before anyone knew who he was)

I got to sing and scream until I was hoarse and dance and stomp until my feet... well... they are about to fall off. I love music. I love concerts. All is right with the world.

And look knitters, we are "microtrendy"! Read MSNBC for more here:
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/20630522/site/newsweek/

And just because it amuses me to no end and because the Office needs to be back on NOW, I'm posting the coolest mashup ever. Hilarious.

Nearing sunset on Santa Monica Beach

Nearing sunset on Santa Monica Beach
Originally uploaded by adnarim28

Pictures from California and my recent trip to the Cascades are at my flickr page. More to come as the days go by.
m.

over

Eric ended it with me last night, but he was a gentleman about it and I think that we can be friends in time.

And it's almost like he did me a favor.

*sigh*
m.

seventeen days

Classes start back in seventeen days. Seventeen days, can you believe it?
Summer went just as quickly as I feared, and here we are about to pitch back into it again. I'm still tired. Still worn out. Still not ready to pitch back into all of this.

More about California later.

from california..

California is great, I'm having tons of fun, but I miss Virginia. I didn't think I'd ever say that.

More later.

advocating inventor

Harry Potter Countdown

I found a really awesome book review of the last HP book today at NYTimes.com. The spoilers are mild, at best. You get a rough death count and you find out what a "Hallow" is, so be warned.

http://www.nytimes.com/2007/07/19/books/19potter.html?_r=1&oref=slogin

When I found this online, I was really excited about it and I was talking to Eric about it... we decided to go to lunch together today. He kept looking down at his phone. He's got his phone on him pretty much nonstop, but he was looking at the phone excessively, even for him.

"What, is someone text messaging you, why do you keep looking at your phone like that?"

"Nope." He looked shifty.

"What on Earth are you doing then?"

"You don't wanna know."

"Uhm, yes I do."

"I've been looking down at my phone to see how long it is between your Harry Potter references. So far it's been 2 minutes, eleven minutes, and right now you're at 17 minutes."

I glare at him.

"If this were anyone else, you'd think it was hysterical. You can't be mad at me."

So this is how the whole lunch went. We spent the whole time talking about Harry Potter, without mentioning the name. He's never going to let me live my enthusiasm down :-p

But aside from all that, FRIDAY NIGHT, girls! It's going to be such fun!
m.

it has to be said.

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

that is all. Nothing to see here, move along.

I'd go the whole wide world...

I was having a discussion with my friend Nathan tonight over the origins of the song used to great effect in Stranger than Fiction.

Somewhere inbetween arguing whether it was by an obscure group called Wreckless Eric or the more well known Monkees, I found the clip from the movie on YouTube.

I could try to describe this scene to help you better understand the context, but really and truly, you're just better off renting the movie.



Yay for impetuous, heartfelt gestures. The world needs more of them.
m.

not that much to say

Sorry I haven't updated the blog in a while... I just haven't really had anything to say. I helped out with Hokie Healing, and that was great. You would think that I would link to all of the blogs talking about it, but it totally slipped my mind.

So here we go plunging in July, which by all accounts will be the best month ever. The Fourth of July is planned. I'll be eating delicious crab and watching movies outdoor on a big screen. A trip to the river is in the works, for the Tuba reunion Eric will be involved in...that weekend. Yes. He played tuba in the Marching Virginians. And they want to have a reunion. Including a pirate-themed day. I'll just leave it at that.

The week after that, the new Harry Potter movie is out on Wednesday. Thinking about having people over to watch movie 3 and movie 4, in preparation for movie 5. My friend Laurie's wedding is that coming weekend... so I'll be driving out to someplace called Rixeyville to watch, celebrate, and drink.

The week after that, the LAST HARRY POTTER BOOK IS OUT. Immediately after I pick up my copy at the Christiansburg B&N, I'll be packing my bags and heading off to CALIFORNIA. California for a whole WEEK to see my best friend from college, who I haven't seen for three years. Once I fly back in, I'll be spending a day or two in the DC area to hang with the very kind girlfriend who is going to be babysitting my car and driving me to and from Dulles.

So there's July for you. It's gonna be busy.

I've been toying with several projects, cause I figure I can do some knitting on the plane...I've been thinking about doing a shawl or the clapotis, but I haven't decided yet. And I really need to try sock knitting again, with some new yarn and addi turbos. Size 2 DPNs are no fun. Stabby stabby.

Ok, so maybe I did have a few things to say :)
m.

New Knitty, and the Problem with Knitted Tanks

Kit: new knitty's up.

me: yeah i was browsing it earlier
me: it all looks too hard for me to try
me: plus
me: am i the only one who finds knitted tanks unappealing
me: ?

Kit: the only two things i would consider would be the scarf and unmentionables
Kit: no, not really.
Kit: but i will admit, i'm making two right now
Kit: but i can get away with them because i'm teeny

me: Yeah, with my giant heaving breasts I'll look like I just escaped from some kind of knitters mental institution.

when fandoms collide

This is taken from the Washington Post Express, about the new Harry Potter knitting book, Charmed Knits:

Headline: The Crafts That Must Not Be Named

If you are crafty, into "Harry Potter", and clinically insane, then the new "Charmed Knits: Projects for Fans of Harry Potter" ($15, Wiley) is for you. It's the perfect storm of dorkiness, featuring Molly's Amazing Technicolor Housecoat, above, a Quiddich sweater and home accents like Weasley Sweater and Golden Snitch Christmas ornaments. While it looks like some of the projects, like the House Scarves, could be handled by beginners, some of the ideas have instructions like "Rnd 4 : K2, [p2, k4] 2 times, p2, k6, [p2, k4] 7 (8,9) times, p2, k2," which we're pretty sure is actually calculus.

The book is hypnotically hilarious. since it points out exactly what's been missing from your home (Clock Blanket) and your life (wand cozie). Some patterns are disappointments, like the Invisibility Cloak, which doesn't, in fact, work. But if you're anything like our mom, you'll start these projects with the best of intentions, only to finish when grandkids arrive.

-Kristen Kirby-Page (Express)

June 16th!

June 16th, the Inn at Virginia Tech!

Unless something unforseen happens, I'll be there, sewing my little heart out.
All this square knitting has made me want to knit a blanket. Something orange and maroon to take to games, maybe. *plots*

It's a good thing I got into sewing before I got into knitting... probably the only knitter alive that likes to sew. We'll see if I still like to sew after!

m.

rough few days

in the past few days I have:

Gone tubing for the first time.

Got incredibly sunburnt from said tubing.

Got yelled at by my dad because he thinks that tubing is unsafe.

Had small rift with Eric because he thinks that father was slightly crazy about the whole thing (and who could blame him, cause he did fly off the handle?)

Did I mention I got sunburnt? Cause I got sunburnt. Like really bad painful sunburn, all over my shoulders.

Saw Pirates of the Caribbean.

In the parking lot of Pirates 3, saw THE EX. With his new girlfriend. As he walked in front of our car. Mercifully while Eric was driving.

Was it the first time I saw him since he dumped me? Yes. Was it the year anniversary of our first date? Yes. Did I wave? Are you fucking kidding me? No!

I took a three hour nap today and it was nice, cause my shoulders weren't bothering me for the first time in three days. :(

bleh.
Off to go find more happy Muppet-y type videos.

Furry Happy Monsters

"Come on monsters, you don't have to cry! We can be happy!"
--Michael Stipe, R.E.M.



If this doesn't make you smile, you need a heart transplant.

Lina in the Sun

Lina in the Sun
Originally uploaded by adnarim28.

My cat is solar powered.

more musical discussions

(14:05:46) Eric: parrot head time
(14:06:00) me: You're having a Jimmy Buffett moment?
(14:06:08) Eric: listening to the box set count?
(14:06:19) me: if I poke you will you ooze coconut rum?
(14:06:24) me: he has a box set?
(14:06:30) Eric: yup
(14:06:48) Eric: boats, beaches, bars and ballads
(14:06:55) Eric: not necessarily in that order
(14:06:58) me: but how many times can you listen to "cheeseburger in paradise"?
(14:08:26) Eric: ummmmm..1 song out of like 78
(14:09:42) me: You're so cute when you defend Jimmy Buffett.
(14:09:57) Eric: like every elliot smith song doesn't sound the same
(14:10:10) me: them's fightin' words

Mom and Me

Mom and Me
Originally uploaded by adnarim28.

I just had to share this photo of my Mom and me from her friend Sharee's wedding. It is incredibly hard for the pair of us to manage to take a picture together sucessfully... who knew we could pull it off?

And for those who say I'm the spitting image of Mom, you haven't seen me and my Dad yet : )

shopping!

I'm off for a day trip to Short Pump Mall in Richmond. I'm going with some girls I knew at the newspaper.

Amanda is awesome. I sent her a list of stores I wanted to hit, she added hers, printed a directory, organized them all by location, and now we're ready to roll.

That's the kind of girl you want in a foxhole with you. Or if we should suddenly be overrun by zombies, you want her by your side with a baseball bat.

Eeeee. I'm gonna spend so much mooooneyyyy.

m.

we are immature people, but that's ok...

This is what happens when you give two only children who compulsively make faces a camera...

Aren't we just the CUTEST COUPLE?

Lots of pictures here, some knitting related, some not.
Eric's birthday was on Friday (and his dog, Pandora's was on Wednesday) so it's been a busy picture taking couple of days.

But first, the Hokie squares.
This is the first set of squares.

This is the second set...one at a time...







Did I mention Eric's birthday was his 30th? It made me want to set things on fire. Like his cake. Bwhahaha.



Pandora, being a sane doggy, thinks we are both insane.


But I thought she had a very good birthday.
My friends, this little girl is the dog who managed to change my mind about all dogs. She also has magical healing powers in her paws.



More Hokie squares to come!!
m.

sixth and seventh square down...

The sixth was a braided cable pattern that looks crazy hard but totally wasn't.
The seventh is half orange and half maroon, and knit on the diagonal.

And as for pictures, this dummy left her camera at Eric's, so they are coming. Really!

musical discussion

Eric, screwing around on his acoustic guitar:

"Don't you recognize that?"

"No."

"*exaggerated sigh* It's 'Pretty Woman.'"

"I have Roy Orbison's Greatest Hits on my iTunes downstairs, and I can assure you, that doesn't sound like 'Pretty Woman'"

We go downstairs. I play "Pretty Woman."

"Can't you recognize, that's what I was playing."

"That didn't sound like 'Pretty Woman.' I really like Roy Orbison. Always have."

"Who doesn't like Roy Orbison?"

"Communists, obviously."

fourth and fifth square down...

The fourth one was my first attempt at stranded knitting, and was striped.

The fifth was knitted in maroon angora, in a pattern I found in the nifty book "200 knitted blocks" found for me by the amazing Loren. It features two cables running up the front.

Fair isle next? DO I DARE TO ATTEMPT INTERSTARSIA?

Stay tuned.

and I did manage to remember to charge my camera, so pictures on the way after I recover from my tequila (Cinco De Mayo) hangover.

an update on knitting and football games...

So I've listened to all your advice and asked everyone who would know and I've decided not to take my knitting to a football game. I've decided to put it in the column of places that I don't take knitting to. After all, I wouldn't take it to a rock show for certain, and I have the distinct feeling that a football game is far more like a rock show than a slow baseball game.

I thought you all would enjoy hearing my friend Traci's take on it though.

Traci: but no one takes knitting to a football game
Me: awh damn.
Traci: how wil you jump up and scream when something good happens?
Me: i could do it!
Me: i'm multitalented!
Traci: if you did that, you would poke someone's eye out with the needle!
me: hahaha
Traci: yarn would fly everywhere and tangle everyone up
Traci: it would be chaos!
me: hahaha
me: chaos! anarchy! football!
Traci: hahaha deranged knitter ruins football game
me: hahaha.
me: Ok, so I'm putting you in Eric's camp
Traci: however, while i would look at you a little funny, i would still acknowledge your existence.

I'm sure that Eric is relieved, although he does tell this story to all his friends. Oh well, they'd figure out I'm a little batty on their own anyway.

third square down

This square was the first one that I designed all by myself. I did a loose variation of the irish hiking scarf, with five knit stitches on each side, and then cables that alternated from the front to the back. I'm also kind of running low on yarn.

And sometime this weekend I'll charge my camera. swear.
m.

two squares down...

I'll post pictures of them once I find and charge my camera.

My first square was a stockinette one, with ribbing on the top and bottom, burnt orange with a maroon rugby looking stripe.

The second square is burnt orange and maroon knit together, with knit stitches on the sides to help it hang flat.

I'm going to knit these until I'm completely sick of them.

Mosaic girls, help!

So, I recently started dating a die hard Hokie football fan. We were talking about sports, and while I don't actively seek out sports, I don't have a problem with them. I mentioned that I'd like to go to a football game this fall, simply because I haven't and it seems like a really great experience. Eric responded to this enthusiastically, and said that he'd love to do that this fall.

"Great," I said. "oooh, and I'll bring my knitting, too..."

Conversation dies abruptly, while Eric looks at me in horror. It was as if I had suggested to him that I give everyone in Lane Stadium a lapdance during halftime.

"What?" I said. "I'll even knit something in maroon and orange, or I'll use Hokie themed knitting needles. What's the problem?"

"If you do that, I will not acknowledge your existence. You want to KNIT at a FOOTBALL GAME?"

"Yes, yes, I do."

"Would they even let you bring it into the stadium?"

"Haven't had problems taking it everywhere so far."

He continued to look at me incredulously.

So this is where I need your help. Have I committed a horrible Hokie faux pas? Am I insane to want to take knitting to a football game? I know that major league baseball regularly hosts "stitch and pitch" nights, how is football any different? Is my sports ignorance showing?

Gina, Mimi, Lauren, Allison, anyone else who wants to chime in, lemme know what you think! The more people who comment, the more proof I can give Eric when he looks at me like I'm insane...

on returning to class tomorrow

The following is excerpted from Frank O'Hara's poem "Adieu to Norman, Bon Jour to Joan and Jean-Paul." I took a class on him and other 20th c. poets this semester, and while O'Hara is an incredibly frustrating poet to study, these lines spoke to me... probably even more so now.

"the only thing to do is simply continue
is that simple
yes, it is simple because it is the only thing to do
can you do it
yes, you can because it is the only thing to do
***
and surely we shall not continue to be unhappy
we shall be happy
but we shall continue to be ourselves everything continues to be possible"

--Frank O'Hara

*sigh*

I'm ok. Physically.
Yes.

twitterpated

I've met a new boy. We've hung out the past three nights.

I like him. :)

*happy sigh*
Spring is lovely, isn't it?

much like shannon...

i too heart the new modest mouse album... especially dashboard.

it is catchy!



catchy is very good. yay for horns!

hello nerves!

So way back in October, I was told about the English Graduate Conference.

Hey! I thought. That sounds great. Bunch of us in a room, talking about our work, presenting papers. Another line on my resume! Good experience if I do pursue the Ph.D. I'll do it.

Monday morning I was reminded that OH CRAP, it's this weekend! And I hadn't looked at the paper I had submitted since I wrote the blasted thing in November!

I had a paper due on Wednesday, and all kinds of work to do between then and tonight.
I've managed to get through it just fine, but oh GOD. Am I nervous about tomorrow. Public speaking and I are barely on speaking terms. And I am READING a ten page paper of mine. In front of PEEEEOPLE. What in the hell was I thinking!

It's tomorrow. Nine thirty am. Torgeson 1020.

Outfit? Black top, probably with sleeves, black and white Ann Taylor skirt, red heels.

Off to go obsess a little bit more. Am I going to sleep tonight? I dunno. I hope so.
*deep breathing*

m.

little miss sunshine

Olive: I'd like to dedicate this to my grandpa, who showed me these moves.
Pageant MC: Aww, that is so sweet.
[Audience applauds]
Pageant MC: Is he here? Where's your grandpa right now?
Olive: In the trunk of our car.

Hello third grade...

I have missed you.

My third grade teacher let us bring music into the classroom and listen to it during breaks. "Blame it on the Rain," was a popular selection. So was "Walk The Dinosaur," by Was (Not Was) which I never knew was a song about... masturbation. Talk about ruining my childhood memories.





You try to sit still during "Walk The Dinosaur." I dare you.

This trip back to 1989 was sponsored by The Left Field, where all great tangents come from.

new knitty!

The newest Knitty is up!

Holla!

www.knitty.com

knitting glee

My friend Amanda loved her pair of Fetching, and it made me really happy and warm and fuzzy...not unlike Debbie Bliss Cashmerino Aran!

She's a nighttime cops reporter down in Roanoke, and I thought she'd like the fingerless gloves when she's out in the field taking notes for stories. Within five seconds of the gifting, she had them on, and bragged to everyone what cool looking gloves I made.

It's just so nice to give handmade gifts to people who really appreciate the time and effort that go into them. I try to be really picky about who I make things for, be it my knitting, sewing, or jewelry making. Mostly I've made things for people who appreciate them, but I have made the occasional mistake *clears throat* boyfriend socks *clears throat*

Yay for knitting and friends who love it!
m.

from a conversation with Nikki a few days ago...

Nikki (9:52:29 AM): i feel like i've dated the seven dwarves: Crazy,
Geeky, Slacker, Slutty, Married, Taken, and Sketchy.
Me (9:53:02 AM): ROFLMAO
Nikki (9:53:16 AM): i had to get through the seven dwarves to find my
prince mostly-charming! lol.

I tried thinking of cute dwarf names for my ex-boyfriends but my creativity failed me. Oh well!

disturbing thoughts, random shout-outs, and knitted goodness.

I was at my mailbox today, when a realization hit me like a brick to the stomach. Inside my innocent grey mailbox was an alumni newsletter from my college. I don't know how they managed to find me, I sure didn't update my address with them when I moved from Roanoke, but found me they did. As I idly flipped through the advertisement for Alumni Weekend, a single line caught my eye. Special guests this year, the class of 2002! 2002? Oh, it's their five year reunion. Egads, that means MY five year reunion is next SPRING. In 2008! WTF.

And when did people start celebrating five year reunions anyway? What have I accomplished in those five slim years? How can anyone accomplish anything in those first five years after college? It is string after string of dead end jobs that you take to get experience, because no one pays the slightest bit of attention to anyone under the age of thirty. I resolved on the spot to not go back to any Alumni Weekend. Anyone I really care about from that college I still stay in touch with. I don't feel any nostalgia for those days. Well, not in the sense that the alumni program is counting on.

I miss the person that I was, in ways. I miss the innocence.
I definitely don't miss the cluelessness though.

I got to see a picture from my first serious boyfriend's (from college) wedding this week. His lovely bride was wearing a wedding dress with a white cowboy hat, and he, he was wearing a black suit, black hat and bolero tie. And everyone keeps telling me, that could have been you.

And I heave a sigh (after I recover myself from laughing at the fact that he had a Wild West Wedding) and thank every deity around the block that I did NOT. I am completely different from that girl he used to know. In ways I think it should be against the law for anyone to marry under the age of 25, cause I know that when he proposed to me at the tender age of 20 that I had absolutely no clue who I was or who I was going to become.

And let's have a moment of silence for the fact that I used to be with a man who wore a bolero tie in public. For his wedding, no less. Restrain your laughter. I know it's hard.

Today has been nice. I finished Amanda's pair of Fetching. I went to my lovely yarn store Mosaic (and I'm not just saying that cause they read the blog, hi everybody!) to pick up yarn (one skein for two gloves! Ha! Lies!) and got to meet Gina and a bunch of other Mosaic bloggers. I picked up more Debbie Bliss (for more pairs of Fetching, natch) and spent some time watching children play with Purl, Gina's pug. No pictures of the finished product, cause I'm lazy like that. I might take some later tonight.

Really looking forward to getting in some serious knitting time over break, as well as catching up on my work *sigh*, doing my taxes *double sigh*, and maybe, cleaning out my horrible closet in my bedroom *quadruple sigh with a few decorative tears.* It will be nice to rest up and finally get over the stupid sinus infection.

Until next time...

Enough said.

By the way, it is a coincidence that Lina's eyes match the bedspread.

Five days left in 25

My parents made a big deal out of my birthday every year when I was a kid. I'm not sure if it's because they did it just for me, or if I made them be that way. For as long as I can remember, my birthday countdown begins on January 1st. Then it's exactly two months.

I remember in elementary school that I would check out the expiration dates on our pints of milk and get really excited when I would see my birthday. If the date was on a pint of milk, it must be really close! If it was on a bag of chips or a box of cereal, it could be a few months away. Even Valentine's Day is just another stop on the Month of Miranda. Even if I don't have a boyfriend, hey, in fourteen days i'll have a birthday! I smiled when I bought my last pint of milk at the store recently. Guess what the expiration date was... :)

Despite having a birthday on the last day of February, I have only gotten ONE snowday as a birthday present. It was in kindergarten, I was five, and I was MAD. Every kid in the class had a party on their birthday, and made their own cake, and it was a good time for all. I had missed the Valentine's Day party because I was the last kid in the class to get the chickenpox. And then, SNOW, ON MY BIRTHDAY! No party! No fair! That wasn't a really good month.

The last few birthdays have been kind of rough.

Last year, I was at the hands of a merciless employer, that strung me along thinking that I would be able to write full-time for them. I had thrown close to three years of my life, my shitty, first job post-college, into thinking that if I just worked hard enough, I'd get what I wanted. If I just took another graduate class. If I just worked all of the bad hours with a smile. If I had just freelanced enough. This time last year, I was at the end of my full-time writing trial, and by my birthday, I knew they would be sending me back to my dead-end job in another part of the publication.

In a way, my time wasn't wasted, because I got to meet a lot of other hard-working, creative people my own age that I am still friends with. We all went to the Macado's in downtown Roanoke and I celebrated my birthday surrounded by people. Not getting what I wanted so dearly still hurt. I admit I did a lot of self-medicating in those weeks, waiting for the higher ups to decide my fate.

I took a week off for my birthday, and took a good, hard look at 25. Just exactly what the hell was I going to do now?

Fortunately, as the months started to quickly drain away in 2006, I had an opportunity to go back to school fall straight into my lap when I needed it the most.

I moved to Tha Burg, I got settled in class. I am so happy now that I feel that I have no right to complain about a bad day... life could be so much worse. I got an opportunity to hit the big red "RESET" button on my life... and maybe this time I'll do things better.

The hard-earned lessons I've picked up this year:

1. I am a lot smarter and more capable than I give myself credit for. If I plan on doing anything with my life, I need to put a great deal more faith in myself than I have in the past.

2. I have fought a long, hard battle with self-esteem for as long as I can remember. I can remember every single insult that was thrown my way when I was in school. I can remember almost every single time that I was called ugly, fat, or even worse. I have taken a good hard look at myself and I have realized that every single one of those hateful insults and the hateful people who threw them at me were WRONG. Flat wrong.

3. I have learned not to blame myself for other people's issues. Screw them.

My profile line isn't a lie. It's not been a lot of fun thinking that 26 is four years away from thirty. My life is so much more different than I really planned it to be, but I still think that I'm on the right track now. And that's the first time I've felt that way in years.

I've been doing a lot of serious thinking about what my life will be post-graduate school, and the thing that makes me the happiest is knowing that the next steps I take will be all mine. I won't be doing it to please my parents. I won't be arranging my life around someone I'm dating. It's all me, and even if I crash and burn spectacularly, at least the flames will be nice.

2007 is shaping up to be a really nice year, from these first two months. 26 might not be so very bad after all.

reason #45872 I love being single.

I can make a homemade pizza, slice some dill pickle on top, and there are no critical comments.

So delicious.
m.

*and the clouds part, heavenly music streaming down from the sky*

Antibiotics are AWESOME.

I also finished my first glove of Fetching. I can do thumbs! wooooooo!
Pictures to come later.

indie rock glasses and illness

Wednesday night, I went to bed (late of course, finishing up an assignment) having no clue that when I woke up Thursday morning it would feel like I had gotten hit by a freaking freight train. But I did. Naturally. Flu? Sinus infection? Cold? I dunno. All I know is I feel like hell, I'm blowing goblins out of my nose and my ears keep hurting.

The past four days are a blur of Nyquil and sleep, and I still don't feel better. I have an appointment at Schiffert today, and if they don't prescribe me some antibiotics for this thing, some shit is going to go DOWN to CHINATOWN. See? I can't even write under the auspices of this thing.

The good news is I did manage to make it down to Roanoke to finally pick up my new backup glasses, even though my ears didn't like me so very much for the trip there and back. It's only taken 21 years, but I finally have a pair of glasses that aren't heavy, don't make my eyes look weird, and I finally look like the ADORABLE indie rock goddess I profess to be. Scope out my profile picture and see.

And since you, my patient, gentle reader, have sat through my bitching, I'll throw in a cute cat photo for free. LINA SAMMICH!

m.

Let's try this again, shall we?

This is definitely not my first foray into the intrepid world of blogs. I've had a blog in one incarnation or another since at least 2001. I even tried Blogger last year, but I hated the interface so soundly that I abandoned it and used it simply to comment on other friends who had a blogspot.com blog.

I'm going to try this whole mess again. After all, I'm not fourteen years old, so why do I still have a Livejournal? And I did happen to snag a really cool Sleater-Kinney related URL, so why not. Keep an eye on this space for random rants, pictures of knitting projects and my cat, and more insanity relating to my life and my interests. I make no promises to update regularly. I am an English graduate student and all I do ALL DAY is read and write.

Speaking of which, I have a three to four page project due tomorrow I haven't started yet. Woo HOOO.

Signing off for now!