Frozen goodness

Still not quite done with that sock.

But in consideration of our current heat wave, here's what I did make:

The glop on the left is cinnamon-chocolate ice cream. Thing 1 chose the flavor, and it's pretty good. The glop on the right, though, was my choice, and it's to die for. It's blueberry-lemon sour cream ice cream, from a recent issue of Sunset. I know, it doesn't have those 2 major food groups, chocolate or caramel. But it does have 3 others: fresh blueberries, lemon, and sour cream. I could gorge on this stuff. But hey, it's healthy, right? All those antioxidants? And calcium?

I love ice cream makers.

Oh, and I finished another book today, A Short History of Tractors in Ukrainian. I love this book. One of the funniest I've read in a long time, but also sad and insightful.

Book Binge

I'm about to turn the heel on sock #2, but I've taken a little break from knitting and gone on a small reading binge instead. I've managed to read 3 books in 3 days. The books are totally different from each other, and I enjoyed them all. They were:

• In the Company of Cheerful Ladies, the second-latest book in the No. 1 ladies Detective Series. I'm not normally much of a mystery fan, but these aren't really mysteries anyway, and they're a lot of fun. They make me want to go to Botswana.
• The Glass Castle, Jeannette Walls's memoir of growing up with 2 very eccentric parents. Dad was an alcoholic, Mom was an (probably bipolar) artist, and they both had odd ideas about how to raise children. I like how Walls is able to relate all the details of a very difficult childhood without ever seeming to feel sorry for herself.
• The Sea of Trolls. This one is a fantasy, probably aimed mostly at the young adult market. It's a saga that takes place in about the 8th Century AD, and includes trolls, dragons, and some really great characters. In fact, the sword and sworcery aspects definitely take a third place behind character development and real moral issues. The author has taken care to make the story historically accurate as well. And the book includes several Irish Wolfhounds in supporting roles.

We also took the Things to see a movie today, because there's only so much time you can spend in the pool, it's too hot to play outside, and they will eventually drive us crazy in the house. We saw Cars, which wasn't my favorite Pixar movie, but it was cute. The Things liked it.

Global warming schwarming

Yesterday it only got up to 104.5, but as you can see, we've topped that today:

And it's not supposed to get any cooler for several days at least. And what do you do when you're a Saint Bernard and temps top the century mark?

Go for a bit of a dip, of course! Actually, the pool is about the only way I can persuade Ruthie to momentarily leave the air conditioned comfort of the house. And yes, we have an actual in-ground pool, but she can't quite get up her courage to step in.

Thank you, Secret Pal!!

I'm participating in the One Skein Secret Pal exchange, and my first skein arrived yesterday, complete with a very cute notecard:

Yay, it's Kureyon! Kureyon's just about my favorite yarn in the world. Anytime I'm in a store that carries Noro, I find myself quickly and irresistibly drawn to the Kureyon. And I love this colorway, too! Thank you, Secret Pal!! I'm thinking this skein may end up as a felted bowl.

The cactus, incidentally, has nothing to do with anything; I just noticed that the flowers matched one of the colors in the yarn and thought it would make a nice picture.

I don't think we quite hit 100 degrees yesterday. Here's the thermometer when I got home:
The top number was the outside temp. But today and tomorrow it's supposed to hit 107. Plus, that means we're having "Spare the Air Days," in which the heat turns our car, industrial, and agricultural emissions into a nice thick soup, which gets trapped in the valley by the high pressure system, marinating us all in lovely toxins.

Missing the Big Picture

This happened several months ago, when we were in London. But it's funny, and I've been meaning to share.

We were at the Tate Modern, which is in a huge building that was once a power station. This museum has particularly good signs about its art. In addition to the title, artist, and media, the signs also tell you quite a bit about the meaning and context of each piece. As we walked around, a couple in their early 20's was more or less keeping pace with us, and they were very carefully reading each sign and discussing the meaning of everything. Very sweet.

In one room, I came across them standing near one wall, earnestly discussing the sign. Here's where they were standing:

What you may or may not be able to make out is a tiny little sign on the larger wall (not the bigger sign to the left). For several minutes, they were standing in front of that sign, which described a work entitled "Hanging Figure." And they were looking down at the three objects on the floor, talking with great animation and interest about why the artist had entitled the piece the way he did, and what it all meant. They had some great theories.

Unfortunately, they were so engrossed in their discussion that they failed to look up. If they had, this is what they would have seen:

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(scroll down slowly)

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(a little more)

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They were critiquing the room's air vents.

I thought about telling them to look up, but I knew if I tried to talk, I would've collapsed into incomprehensible American cackles. So I snorted quietly into my clapotis and waited for them to leave for the next gallery, so I could tell hubby (who'd missed the whole thing).

Wednesday Stuff

The second sock is coming along slowly. I'm glad I'me working on something small and light like socks, because the temp's supposed to hit 106 here by Saturday. True, we have air conditioning, but still, even the thought of 106 makes me sweat.

While I was in Portland, I learned of a new yarn called "Meditation", by Skacel. It's infused with lavender scent so you get aromatherapy while you knit, and the scent is supposed to last through 40 washes. It's a pretty ribbon yarn. WEBS carries it, so I'm thinking I may need to give it a try, maybe for a sort of plain sleeveless shell. Plus, I understand Austermann makes a sock yarn infused with jojoba and aloe.

Thing 1 continues to amaze me with her ability to ask difficult questions in the car. Yesterday during a 15 minute drive she managed to ask:

• Is there such thing as God?
• Why don't some people believe in God?
• Was he the first person?
• Did he create the universe?
• Did he pour that stuff into space that makes you float?

[At this point I explained the concept of gravity]

• Did God make gravity?
• Is gravity in the middle of the planet?
• What's the biggest planet in the universe?
• Is Pluto the smallest planet?
• What would happen if she jumped up on Pluto?
• Why isn't earth the biggest planet?

Maybe I'm inadequate as a parent, but I found it a bit taxing to navigate in traffic while teaching theology, psychology, physics, and astronomy to a 6 year old.

We're baaaaack!

We survived our vacation, and now I can blog with pictures again.

Here's my yarn haul from the trip. Up top is mohair from Farmhouse Knit Shop's own label. Then from left to right, Mountain Colors Bearfoot, 2 colorways of Socks That Rock, Knit One Crochet Two 2nd Time Cotton, 2 colors of Himalayan Yarn Tibet (rayon), and 2 colors of Lanaknits Hemp for Knitting.

Now, be warned: below are non-knitting-related vacation pictures.

First we see Ruthie enjoying the garden with Herby, my parents' corgi puppy.

Herby loooooooves Ruthie!!
And here's an impressive sight: a Saint Bernard and two Irish Wolfhounds. For the first time in her life, Ruthie looked petite. Thing 2. I have no explanation for this picture. And this is at Enchanted Forest. Too bad you can't rent the cage by the hour....

Vacation Almost Over

Today is our last day of vacation. I managed to fit in another yarn shop visit yesterday, this time to Farmhouse Knit Shop. I scored some Blue Moon sock yarn there.

The other day we took the Things to Enchanted Forest. This is a theme park just south of Salem. I hadn't been there in over 20 years, and I was delighted to discover that it's still almost exactly the same. It's a low-key sort of place, and it's still nicely kept up, but it hasn't become any more commercialized either. The Things loved it. How fun to find a place from childhood memory so intact!

Still on Vacation

I've visited 3 yarn stores in the last 2 days. Two of them were old favorites: Yarn Garden and Northwest Wools. The third was new to me. It's called Abundant Yarn and Dyeworks, and it's very nice. Big space, good selection, nice people. There's a cafe there, too.

And today Ruthie got to run with 2 Irish Wolfhounds. It's not often that a Saint Bernard looks petite, but she did today! The dogs had a really good time together.

Later, we made a trip to my favorite bookstore, Powell's. It was just the Beaverton one, not the main one downtown, but still a treat, and I still found plenty of books I had to have.

Blogging from Oregon

We all survived the trip north. Ruthie and the Things were very well-behaved; the Things watched videos, and Ruthie watched the scenery. My parents' corgi puppy, Herby, has decided that Ruthie is the best toy ever, and Ruthie has been very patient.

I plan to visit some yarn stores while I'm here!

Sock's Done

So I finally finished the sock. When you look at it like this, it looks like I have deformed feet or something. I don't. They're just not very big (size 5 1/2) so the foot section of the sock is short. One of the nice things about knitting my own socks is that they actually fit! No bunching up by the heel or around the toes.

Now, of course this means I have to start the second sock. Is there any harder thing to begin than a second sock? Too bad wildly mismatched footwear isn't stylish, so we could all get away with knitting single socks.

On an unrelated note, I'm leaving this weekend for a roadtrip, complete with Things and Ruthie. Oh what fun! I'll try to blog, but doubt I'll be able to post pictures; my Kodak seems to get cranky when away from its home computer.

Woof!

You Are a German Shepherd Puppy

Intelligent, quick witted, and a bit aggressive. You've got the jaw power to take a bite out of anyone you choose.

What Breed of Puppy Are You?

Socks

I am making socks. The idea was that this would be sort of a quickie project, but what you're looking at here is a week's worth of knitting. It's going very slowly for several reasons. First, the maze pattern involves slipped stitches, ans the stripes are fair isle, both of which take me forever to do. Second, I have had many distractions that are keeping me from knitting, including a writing deadline and Thing 1 being out of school. And third, I've actually been reading some books, and I can't manage to read and knit at the same time.

Those are my excuses. In any case, I do love the pattern, and I think they will be very nifty socks whenever they're done. It's not like I'll be wearing socks for several more months anyway.

The pattern, by the way, is in Sensational Knitted Socks, and the yarn is Louet Gems Opal.

Pierced Ears

Thing 1 celebrated the end of first grade by getting her ears pierced. Look closely and you can see the earring. She was very brave.

Pigeons & Other Pests

It's fairly breezy today, and I discovered this among the debris on the back patio. Apparently those %$#@ pigeons on our roof have been doing something besides just crapping all over everything. I'm all in favor of nature and everything, but just what we did not need was more pigeons.

Speaking of things we don't need, when did campaigns start using automated phone calls from celebrities? Hubby and I are currently playing a game called Who Got Calls from Better Celebrities? I'm winning for today--I've had Sally Field and Jerry Brown, and he's just had Martin Sheen.

Today was graduation on my campus. I got to sit there for 3 1/2 hours wearing a silly hat while the names of 2100 graduating students were read. The joys of academe.

No Church of Elvis?

Thanks to Peg, I took the Belief-O-Matic test. According to the test, here's how my beliefs match various faiths:

1.
Unitarian Universalism (100%)
2.
Liberal Quakers (89%)
3.
Secular Humanism (88%)
4.
Neo-Pagan (80%)
5.
Theravada Buddhism (76%)
6.
Reform Judaism (69%)
7.
Mahayana Buddhism (67%)
8.
Mainline to Liberal Christian Protestants (67%)
9.
Jainism (66%)
10.
New Age (64%)
11.
Nontheist (61%)
12.
Sikhism (61%)
13.
Bahá'í Faith (60%)
14.
Taoism (57%)
15.
Hinduism (50%)
16.
Scientology (47%)
17.
New Thought (45%)
18.
Islam (41%)
19.
Orthodox Judaism (41%)
20.
Orthodox Quaker (41%)
21.
Christian Science (Church of Christ, Scientist) (29%)
22.
Mainline to Conservative Christian/Protestant (20%)
23.
Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (Mormons) (19%)
24.
Eastern Orthodox (17%)
25.
Roman Catholic (17%)
26.
Seventh Day Adventist (17%)
27.
Jehovah's Witness (9%)

(Mostly) finished grading and an FO

Believe it or not, I actually made it through that awful term paper pile today. And then this evening I finished a knitting project. Hooray!

This shell is knitted in Artfibers' Fauve, which alternates between cotton/hemp and shiny nylon. I love the colors. The Artfibers people custom-made the pattern for me when I was at the store. I'm especially pleased because they had only 6 balls left in this color, and the computer said I would need 5 3/4 to make this shell...and the computer was right.

Oh, and to take this picture I used my new tripod for the first time. I haven't really figured out how to work it, but I did manage to get it to hold the camera still, at least.

More Pincushions

I've completed a couple more pincushions. The one on the right is in memory of one of my favorite bands. The very first Ramones record I bought (yes, record, as in vinyl--this was back in high school) was Road to Ruin. One of the tracks on that record is, of course, "Needles and Pins."

The cushion on the left can be used for voodoo purposes. And because the idea came from Knatolee, it's also reversible:
I discovered a couple things while searching for suitable photos online for the Patriotic Voodoo pincushion. 1. There are many more pictures available of our Fearless Leader, I suppose in part because we've been graced with his presence for longer. 2. While Stephen Harper makes silly faces, and has been photographed at barbecues and wearing a regrettable western outfit, he lacks the Bush's unique ability to emulate a chimpanzee. And Bush smirks way better, too. 3. It's nearly impossible to find a full-length picture of these men. Perhaps they have no legs. Or maybe they just don't want us to see their tails....

Yarn Nirvana

Today I temporarily abandoned hubby, children, pets, and term papers, and I went on that yarn shopping trip I was promised for my birthday back in March. In my absence, it looks like royalty visited:

but I don't mind missing the royalty because I was yarn shopping. I drove to San Rafael, about 2 hours away (and a lovely drive it was, too, because there was NPR on the radio and no squabbling in the back seat). I went first to Marin Fiber Arts, a new store I'd never been to before. They carry mostly high-end yarns, but not the frou-frou types. The two people working there (the owner and an employee, I think) were very friendly, and they led me into temptation in the form of Goddess Yarns alpaca. This experience was quite a difference over the one I had earlier in the week at that store in Oakland. Consequently, I spent exactly $0 in Oakland the other day, and a lot more than that today at Marin Fiber Arts.

I next visited Dharma Trading, an old favorite of mine several blocks down 4th Street. They'd rearranged the store since I was in last, which was slightly disorienting, but I still came away with some goodies.

Lastly I swung through Berkeley on my way home and stopped at Stash Yarn on Solano. Note to self: avoid Solano on Saturday afternoons. What a zoo. It took several trips around the area to find a place to park, and even that was just a 30 minute spot. Which was probably just as well, since I did less damage to my credit card that way. Anyway, here's today's haul:

I like that Ruthie is guarding it for me. Such a helpful dog. I actually have specific plans for all this yarn, as soon as I turn my grades in....

No light at the end of the tunnel, yet

Remember that stack of papers I wanted you to feel sorry for me about last week? They're graded. So is another similar-sized stack. And here's what remains:
It's depressing me just to look at it. I'm considering the staircase method of grading. Once I make my way through these, though, I'm done, other than a few stray papers and a couple of exams, and several tedious administrative tasks. My goal is to be finished by Tuesday afternoon, so that I have an entire 2 days of rest before Thing 1 goes on school vacation.

Bugs, Views, and Yarn

Today Thing 1 and I went to the Lawrence Hall of Science at UC Berkeley. I wanted to catch an exhibit there that closes in a few days, and I figured Thing 1 would enjoy tagging along to a science museum.

The exhibit is on forensic entomology, and it was worth visiting. Allison learned a bit (and didn't find it too gruesome--she has her mother's tastes). When we returned home, I got a kick out of listening to her tell the neighbor kid what forensic entomology is. As if the neighbor kid's parents didn't already think my family was weird!

I'd never been to this museum before, and it was worth it just for the kick-ass view. It was a little hazy today, but still, doesn't Thing 1 look like the Empress of the East Bay?

On the way back, I decided to stop at a knitting store I'd never visited before in Oakland. I was disappointed. The selection was okay, although the yarn was displayed by color, which I find annoying. But even worse was the woman working there. There was only 1 other customer in the store when we entered, and the employee was helping her choose a color. As we walked in the door, the employee looked right at me and sort of gave me a dirty look. No smile, no hello, no nothing. I wandered around for a few minutes, looking for a particular yarn, but she never said a word or acknowledged my existence. So I left. Maybe she's a delightful woman who was just having a bad day, but with plenty of yarn stores to choose from, I don't have much patience for rudeness.

Spreading Joy

My darling hubby decided that this time of year was perfect to escape to Las Vegas for 4 days with his buddies. Because, you know, I don't have anything at all to do right now and I love driving 60 miles roundtrip twice a day to take Thing 2 to preschool, not to mention being sole cook/maid/mediator/chauffeur/laundress/tutor/entertainer/disciplinarian for both Things.

I was going to take another picture of the pitifully large stack of term papers I have left to grade, so you could all feel sorry for me, but hubby has the camera. So you'll just have to take my word for it. So now, instead, I shall vent about the following:

• students who enroll in a class with 73 people in it, take an essay exam, and then check with me 20 minutes later to see if I've graded their tests yet
• students who ask me when the final exam is even though I told them at least 6 times and wrote it on the board twice, and it's published in the course schedule
• students who come crying to me because they've been caught cheating on a test (duh--when your instructor's a former police chief, maybe he knows something about catching wrongdoers)
• administrators who think the end of May is a good time to give department chairs projects with May 31 deadlines
• administrators who think the end of May is a good time to have extra meetings
• tech support people who can't tell you why the outgoing email isn't working or when it will work again
• colleagues who act like kindergarteners
• people who leave voicemail messages with unintelligible return phone numbers

Okay, I feel much better now.

May Happiness

Despite the arrival of grading time (and the grading elves' annual trip to Mexico), this time of year does have its benefits. You can see them to the right: fresh cherries and white peaches. Mmmmm. Almost makes the grading worthwhile.

PS--In case anyone was wondering, Saint Bernards are also fond of de-pitted cherries and peaches.

Woe Is Me

This is less than half of what I have to grade in the next week. Where are those grading elves when you need them??

Yay for Hot Weather!

The Things can get back in the pool! Why is this a good thing? Because they can play nicely for a long time while I grade papers at a patio table nearby. Because it amuses them forever--no more "I'm bored!" Because they come out of the pool exhausted. Because when misbehavior is imminent, I can threaten to remove pool privileges, and the misbehavior evaporates.

Yesterday the water looked so inviting that I joined Thing1 in the pool. But then I felt guilty because I wasn't grading things. So I grabbed my clippers and started trimming back some of the plants that grow behind (and often over) the pool wall. You can see one of the lavenders in the picture here, pre-trimming. I have to tell you, there are few better ways to spend an afternoon than shoulder-deep in cool water, arms buried in lavender, and relatively guilt-free because even if you're not making headway on grading, you're at least accomplishing something that needs to be done. The water was 80 degrees yesterday and it felt great. Too bad I can't grade or knit while in the pool as well.

Warning to Self

Next time I teach a class with essay exams and a 20 page term paper, I will not let 73 students enroll in that class.

Herby the Love Dog

My parents' household was just joined by a new puppy. Herby the Love Dog is an 8-week-old Pembroke Corgi. He seems to be quite comfortable in his new home, as you can see.

....must...
remind...self...do...NOT...need...puppy...now!

And 95%

Your Political Profile:

Overall: 5% Conservative, 95% Liberal

Social Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Personal Responsibility: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Fiscal Issues: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Ethics: 0% Conservative, 100% Liberal

Defense and Crime: 25% Conservative, 75% Liberal

How Liberal Or Conservative Are You?

This should come as little surprise to those who know me. The 5% came from the question related to gun control.

53%

Your Stress Level is: 53%

You are somewhat prone to stress, especially when life gets hard. When things are good, you resist stressing over little problems. But when things are difficult, you tend to freak out and find it hard to calm down.

How Stressed Are You?

It's that time of year when I'm tired, when I can't possibly get everything done that needs doing, and when I realize that once again, I've over-committed myself. I'm surprised I'm only at 53%!

So there are growing piles of papers to be graded, there are exams to be written, the house is a mess, the garden needs weeding, my car is filthy, and my children go off to school looking like they're being raised by wolves (but hopefully not acting like it!). And what did I do about it last night? I knitted. I knitted for almost 2 hours while I watched some bizarre Czech movie about a tree-stump baby that eats people, and after the movie was over, I knitted and watched John Stewart. I needed those 2 hours or I might have gone insane. Sometimes, when hubby knows I have a ton of things to do, he looks over at me and asks, "Then why are you knitting?" He doesn't understand that knitting calms and soothes me. Hell, I think I should be able to deduct my yarn as a medical expense because knitting is my therapy.

Speaking of hubby, this morning I came downstairs after my shower to discover that he let Thing 1 make herself chocolate Eggos and root beer for breakfast. Great.

Yarn Shopping with Thing 2

On Saturday, Thing 2 and I attended the Conference of Northern California Handweavers. I don't weave (though I'd like to, someday), and I didn't have time to attend any classes, but I wanted to go to the market because I suspected there would be interesting yarn. And there was. What I really liked about the market, aside from the fact that it was waaaay less crowded than Stitches, was that most of the vendors were small producers. In other words, instead of the same yarns I can get any time online or at a LYS, there were lots of beautiful yarns I'd never seen before. I came home with some cashmere/merino and some merino/angora. There were a couple of the larger vendors there as well, including Habu. Unlike at Stitches, it was actually possible to get within 100 yards of the Habu booth, so I acquired two tiny skeins of fine cashmere, two balls of silk paper, and one ball of hot pink fiber made from a pineapple plant.

Thing 2 enjoyed the market quite a bit. She was fascinated by the looms, and totally entranced by spinning wheels. She probably could have spent all day watching people spin. She also liked touching yarns and fleeces and leafing through some knitting books, and looking at the beautiful works on display in the gallery. Thing 2 is my little Artiste, and she's obviously acquiring a healthy appreciation for fiber arts.

In fact, the next day as I was preparing lunch, Thing 2 suddenly abandoned her Polly Pocket and announced imperiously, "Mommy! I want you know me how knit!" Now, that's the 3rd time she's asked, and I really hate to say no. But she doesn't have the coordination yet to knit, or even to use her sister's table loom. Does anyone have any ideas for something I could teach a 3-year-old to do with yarn? She doesn't need to produce anything in particular, as long as she believes that she's really making something.

Shameless Boasting

Please excuse the crappy lighting on these pictures. I just finished my new project tonight, and I'm too inordinately pleased with myself to wait until daylight to take pictures of the results. So, what have we here? Pincushions. The other day, it occured to me (probably when I should have been thinking about grading papers) that most pincushions are pretty or cutesy. I've been using a tomato pincushion since I was a teenager. But given the inherent danger of pins, not to mention the general quality of my sewing, shouldn't pincushions look a bit more dangerous?

So there we go: Lethal Pincushions. They're made of felt from Michaels, acrylic batting, and Perle thread. The ideas and designs, I am happy to say, were mine (didn't I tell you I was pleased with myself?). But! That's not all! Lethal Pincushions deserve Lethal Pins. Thus:

The technique for making Shrinky-Dink pins is from Wee Wonderfuls. Aren't Shrinky-Dinks a wonderful thing? The idea and design were mine again. And also:

You have to understand: unlike some of you, I have limited artistic skill. Sure, I can be inspired, but my execution is often lacking. This is one of the few times when idea + execution (an appropriate term here) came together perfectly. Plus, the materials are cheap, and the whole project took only a few hours. And I got to introduce Thing 1 to the Wonderful World of Shrinky-Dinks.

Isn't life grand?

I have one other additional idea for a pincushion that must be made, but I dunno when I'll have time to make it. Work calls.

Finally, an FO

I finally finished the scarf last night, subtitles notwithstanding. The pattern is from Knit Scarves! and it uses Colinette Prism. I used the colorway called Cinnamon. I love this yarn--the colors are complex and beautiful and the yarn itself is very soft. Between the yarn itself and the slipstitch pattern, the resulting fabric looks and feels more woven than knitted:

which isn't a bad thing at all. The fabric lays very flat as well; no curling at all. I'm pleased with the scarf, which I will have the opportunity to wear in another 6 months or so.

What's Up

The Clevelend Planned Parenthood is selling this clever jewelry. And while we're on the topic of jewelry, visit my sister's stuff at Etsy. This is the same sister who sent me this very strange llama link. There's a new issue up of The AntiCraft, complete with asparagus recipes. Mmmm. New MagKnits is up, too.

I was finally able to pick up my needles again last night after pause of over 2 weeks. But here's the problem: I also had 3 new Netflix movies waiting for me, and, due to some major queue miscalculation, all 3 have subtitles. I can only knit very slowly while reading subtitles. But if I don't watch all those movies quickly, impatient hubby, who didn't place any of them in the queue and who is anxious to see the next car-chase-blow-things-up flick, will send them back unwatched. So my knitting is once again proceeding, but not very fast. And I'm making a scarf, which made sense a month or so ago when I started and we were having unseasonably cool weather. But now it's in the 80's and we're using the pool already (no sign of the ducks again, by the way). I won't have much use for this scarf anyway for quite a while.

Thing 2 Visits See's Candies

After I got the chocolate scraped off her skin and she changed her outfit to something less chocolate-dipped, we went to Purls & Girls, our local yarn store. No, this isn't the promised birthday yarn shopping trip; I just needed a specific item. Thing 2 was very excited to be going to a yarn store, and when we arrived, she happily pointed out to me her favorites. Then she plopped herself down on a chair and announced, "I want to knit!" Alas, her manual dexterity isn't quite there yet, but it certainly bodes well for the future. And she was mollified by my permission to leaf through pattern books, as well as the (very nice) store employee's attention to her. After I made my purchase, we visited the Hawaiian store 2 doors down, where she scored a plastic lei and a dolphin book, and I got a jar of guava jam. The people there were really nice, too--they tried to teach Thing 2 to say aloha and mahalo.

Friday Stuff

From AP this morning, an article containing the following quote:

"I think people who want to be citizens of this country ought to learn
English," Bush said.

Sadly ironic, considering El Presidente's masterful command of his native tongue.

Bush also stated that immigrants should learn to sing the national anthem in English. I dunno about you, but I'm third-generation American, and I couldn't sing that song if you put a gun to my head (in English or otherwise).

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Life has been so godawfully busy lately that I haven't even picked up my needles in nearly 2 weeks. This makes me sad. Instead, I've been stumbling around from one obligation to another, and then falling into bed for a few hours. And things will probably not let up appreciably until the semester ends a month from now. But one of my birthday presents from hubby was a promise that I could have a kid-free afternoon to go yarn shopping. And yes, my birthday was over a month ago, but I haven't had the chance to redeem yet. But I may try to grab an opportunity tomorrow, which brings up a delightful problem: Which one to visit?? I have all the yarn stores of the Sacramento/San Joaquin Valleys and the San Francisco Bay Area to choose from. Which one should it be?

More Ornithology

I'm on a posting binge today! I've had some lanterns hanging on my side patio for a couple of years. One of them recently fell down (miraculously not breaking), and hubby placed it on the patio table. I happened to look at it today. Here's what I found:

Obviously, somebody (probably finches) had built themselves a nice little home in the lantern. Here's what the inside of the nest looks like:
The outside is woven of grass and weeds, and the inside is lined with bits of paper and a red thread, and, in the very center, tufts of nice, soft Ruthie fur! This is just about the sweetest thing evcer, and I'm glad there were no eggs yet when the lantern blew down.

More Interesting Knitted Things

A knitted toolbelt, machine gun, jackhammer, and, my favorite, motorcycle. And from the same artist, embroidered tattoos. Hubby wants a motorcycle--think I should knit him one?

Duck

This was my swimming pool this morning. He had a girlfriend, too, but she's around the corner. He looked pretty happy with himself.

Pimp My Snack

Remember when I blogged about the Curly Wurly, the Cadbury's candy bar that's mostly unavailable in the US? I brought back a stash when I went to London, but of course that stash was rapidly depleted. Too bad I didn't buy them in this size.

I guess so

You Should Get a PhD in Liberal Arts (like political science, literature, or philosophy)

You're a great thinker and a true philosopher. You'd make a talented professor or writer.

What Advanced Degree Should You Get?

Gratuitous Cuteness

I haven't had time to knit, alas. So in lieu of a picture of a completed project, I'm going to subject you to this:

Remember how much fun a big box was when you were little? Thing 2 has moved into this one.

No Yarn Store, Alas

I did not make it to Unwind today, which is frustrating because it's only a mile or two away. Instead, we took the Things to the LA County Natural History Museum, where much fun was had amidst the dinosaurs, bugs, etc. There was a brief fiber moment: in the Bog People exhibit (which also features some cool info on forensic anthropolgy, which I find fascinating) there were 2 balls of 3000 year old yarn. Somehow it's comforting to think that maybe several thousand years from now, some future archeaologist will unearth my stash, which will then appear in a museum. I wonder what they might conclude from this? "Some 21st century North Americans had an obsession with stockpiling various fibers. This may have been some form of idolatry." The Bog People exhibit also showed a nifty ancient gadget for creating complicated weavings.

Blogging from La La Land

I am blogging from Universal City, where I'm attending an academic conference with family in tow. In fact, as I type, hubby is at the theme park with the Things while I prepare for my presentation this afternoon. I understand there's a yarn store called Unwind not too far away, so I may try to sneak in a visit tomorrow.

Thing 2 misheard the name of one of the rides at Universal Studios, and keeps insisting she wants to go on the Mommy Ride. It made me start thinking, what if there really was such a ride? Giant, harrassed-looking women would pop out and yell, "Eat your vegetables! Stop bothering your sister!" And of course, the dreaded, "Go to bed!!"

Or maybe it's a scary ride for Mommies (as if we needed such a thing). You embark on a transcontinental airline flight with two overtired, overstimulated children, ages 2 and 5. Shortly after the plans takes off, you realize you have no diapers or binkies. The younger child gets airsick and projectile vomits on you. The older child has several tantrums. In the next section, your children are older. One kid gets called to the principal's office and later bonks her head on the monkeybars, requiring a trip to the ER. The other kid comes down with something messy and contagious the morning your husband's out of town and you have an important meeting. I don't know what awaits you in the next section. Kids learn to drive? Daughters start dating? ARRGGHHH!! Let me off this ride!

Break

This week is my spring "vacation". Why the quotation marks? because Thing 2 also has the week off, so I'm spending much of my time entertaining a 3-year-old. Yesterday, in between trips to the potty and dropping off Thing 1 and playhouse annex construction and lunch-making and snack-making and searching for Spongebob on tv and getting the car fixed and going shopping and picking up Thing 1 and homework assistance and outdoor supervision and more shopping and laundry doing and packing and bathing and tucking in...I had 72 essays to grade. Today's schedule includes a dentist appointment for Thing 1, dropping off Ruthie at the kennel, open house at Thing 1's school, and an ACLU meeting, plus more packing (packing for young children is much like preparing for an expedition to the moon). Tomorrow we head for LA, where I have a conference, and where the entire family is tagging along for theme park/museum fun. I guess I can rest...hmmm....in June.

Little People

Am I the only person who thinks Little People are kinda creepy?

Via Boing Boing

Boing Boing usually has some interesting stuff. This morning, a link to a guy from Montreal named Kyle MacDonald. Kyle started off last year with a single red paperclip, and has traded for successively bigger things. He's now up to a year's free rent in Phoenix, and he's trying for a house. Also this morning, a project to crochet a coral reef. And, finally, more Canadian hijinks.

Work Avoidance

I was procrastinating about getting my work done this afternoon, and after I got bored with watching the storm brew outside, I ended up browsing Yahoo's Odd News. I discovered an ad campaign I can appreciate, a candidate for the Worst Mother of the Year Award, and scary bunnies. Now, isn't that better than working??

Knitty

The Spring Knitty is up. A few cute patterns, but one in particular is calling my name. Knitty's knitted nautiloids need to be knitted. Interesting article on silk, too.

Action

Thing 2 was helping me to test the "action" setting on my camera. As you can see, it works pretty well. As for the outfit, well, I guess it's dancing gear.

Monday Miscellany

Knitta goes around "tagging" with their knitting. They knit cozies for things like stop signs and car antennae.

Erika knitted a sweater for the tree outside her house.

10 Plagues finger puppets, to go with the stuffed toys. And if you're not Jewish? Hindu finger puppets. Or nuns. For secular types, you can choose from various scientists, philosophers, and artists (they're magnetic, too--I have Jung and Freud on my office wall). I like to imagine the conversations you could stage between these puppets, such as, say, Kafka and Poe:
Poe: What's that? It's the sound of his heart...
Kafka: ...which has turned into a cockroach!!

Skully

The Skully pullover from Stitch 'n Bitch, finished. Although it's knitted in Lamb's Pride Bulky, it still took a long time to knit because it's oversized, and also because I ran out of yarn and had to order more and wait for it to come. It took about 2 1/2 more skeins than the pattern called for. We're having unseasonably cool weather, so I may actually get to wear it now, instead of waiting until December.

And here is Thing 2 considering a career in modeling:

German

The CAPL-German site has lists of words and phrases in German and their English equivalents, each with a nice, clear photo (CAPL stands for Culturally Authentic Pictorial Lexicon). You can search for a particular word in English or German, or you can browse by category. Although it's not all-encompassing, there is certainly enough to get most non-German speakers through a trip to a German-speaking country. As a semi-vegetarian, I would find it an especially helpful way of avoiding meat.

While browsing the site, I learned a few interesting things, like Germans apparently feel the need for der Pommesticker and der Eisloffel; that the creators of the site think there's an object called a Didl in English; that a pillow is charmingly called a das kopfkissen; and that there are advertisements for hot live loaves. Also, this sign needs little translation. But I think the most puzzling entry is this one. Why does it exist? What are the chances that a traveler would encounter it? Is the sign there as a warning to stay away or as an advertisement? How many of these exist in Germany and why?

My only disappointment with the CAPL site is that it doesn't contain one term I actually needed when I was in Germany: Studentenkarzer. A colleague and I were looking for the one in Tuebingen, and for some reason my pocket German-English dictionary didn't contain this particular term. Fortunately, we quickly found a helpful student who spoke perfect English, and who led us right there. Unfortunately, it was closed that day. Still, I think, it's a damn fine idea.

Holiday Gift Idea

With Passover coming up soon, I figure what everyone needs is this: the Plush Plagues Bag. It contains stuffed versions of all 10 Plagues.

Famous Last Words, Etc.

Your Famous Last Words Will Be:

"Nice doggy."

What Will Your Famous Last Words Be?

Last night I was knitting away at a fair aisle pattern while watching Brokeback Mountain. Hubby glanced over and asked, "Why are you twisting those yarns around like that?" Other than "How much did you spend on yarn?" I do believe that's the only question he has ever asked about knitting. And maybe it's because he really was curious, or maybe it's because he knows I've had a goddamn *&^% week, or maybe he just wasn't entranced by Heath Ledger and Jake Gyllenhaal making out, but he then sat patiently and listened to a short dissertation on single color knitting v. fair aisle v. intarsia.

Wasting Time

So you haven't wasted enough time with Blogthings? It looks like McSweeney's site has all sorts of potential for frittering away precious time.

Fish condos.

Escargot

At least someone appreciates the weather we've been having.

Zeus

This picture was taken last June. The dog on the right is Ruthie, and on the left is Zeus, my parents' dog. Both appear to be fascinated by something edible in someone's hands.

Yesterday my parents had to send Zeus to the Rainbow Bridge. He was 11 years old, and had osteosarcoma.

Zeus was picked up as a stray when he was about a year old. Best as anyone can figure, he was a Saint-Pyr mix. Only about a year after my parents adopted him, they learned that he had horrible hip dysplasia, so bad that he either needed very expensive hip reconstruction surgery, or else he needed to be put out of his misery. Of course, my parents chose the surgery, and Zeus spent many years taking brisk 5 mile walks with my Dad.

At first, Zeus had fear-aggression towards all dogs except Elektra, my parents' alpha terrier. Elektra (who lived to a ripe old age herself) used to put Zeus in his place, and he'd take it, despite that he was several times her size. Surprisingly, Zeus eventually overcame his fear of other dogs, and even enjoyed playing with them. When he visited us in 2005, he had a good time playing with Ruthie, even though he was already fairly old by then.

Zeus was a wonderful, loving companion to my parents. He was also great with my kids. Even though he didn't live with small children, and only visited with them occasionally, he was very tolerant of their noise and wildness, and seemed to genuinely enjoy their company. He was always gentle with them, too. When Thing 1 was 4, she tripped and fell directly onto the sleeping Zeus's open mouth. She started crying that he'd bit her, but we'd all seen it with our own eyes: she'd fallen onto his teeth! She wasn't even scratched, and poor Zeus just seemed distressed that she was crying.

Several years ago, I ended up stranded at my parents' house over spring break when I ruptured a disk in my back. During the month I lay flat on my back, Zeus was a devoted nurse, cuddling next to me in bed oh-so-gently and keeping me company when I was miserable.

My parents haven't been dogless for 17 years, and they say their house is much too empty now. They're already talking about getting another dog or two, and I'm sure they won't be dogless for long. We all know, however, that there's no replacing Zeus. He was a good dog.

Craig's List

I don't ordinarily visit Craig's List, but today I did, and I found a great ad on the San Francisco Bay area edition.

Furry Footwarmers

The slippers that Ruthie was modeling in my last post have now been felted. I like how they turned out, and they were a nice, quick project. They're too big for my size 5 1/2 feet, but then I'm more of a barefoot type anyway. These will be going to a relative who has larger feet than I, and who will appreciate the color, I think.