After today, I can safely say I've heard it all.

Found on the resume of a lovely young profesional woman with a JD degree:

Hobbies:

Grilling

Working
While there were other things listed, I found it hard to get past those two--or is it just me? I had to look at the resume half a dozen times to make sure I wasn't imagining it--who the hell says "working" is a hobby? "Grilling" I can understand if I try, but WORKING?

Reading that drove me to bring home this:


Quilting? Yeah, like I need something ELSE to do . . . .

Saturday Sky

Saturday, August 26, around 915 am CDST:


Not much different from last week, but it is a little cooler--right now, anyway. It's supposed to be hot again today, but a "cold front" is supposed to arrive tomorow morning and drive the temps down into the 80s. I never thought I'd think of 80-plus-degree heat as cool, but it certainly will feel like it.

As for everything else--ehh. I'm feeling moderately more human, but I just can't shake how tired I feel. I've figured out that part of it is that I'm ready to start "nesting" for fall and winter, but since Mother Nature isn't cooperating, I'm cranky. Not to say that we have a real Fall season around here, it's the idea that it's September and it's time for things to start cooling down. It's normally warm until November or so, but that means 70s and low 80s, not this 100-degree stuff.

I have nothing fiberly to show for the week. I picked up knitting needles for the first time last night and promptly dropped them 10 minutes later.

The plan for today is to drag myself over to either the couch or the wheel and do something constructive, with one eye to the sky for that cold front.

Have a good weekend.

Major pissy alert

I've just been too cranky to post anything lately. Thank your lucky stars.

Skipped spinning last night--not in a sociable mood.

And now I'm sitting here watching a friend of mine lose his race for lieutenant governor.

I'll be back when I start feeling human again.

Saturday Sky - still hot (what a surprise!)

Saturday, August 19, 0915 am CDST:


At least there's a few clouds to break up the monotony . . . .

It's supposed to 100+ today, but starting tomorrow it's supposed to "cool" down into the low and mid 90s. I can't tell you how happy that makes me.

When does Fall start again?

Reorganizing the back room

After a few months of trying to decide what I wanted to do with my second bedroom, also known as the "storeroom" or my "soon-to-be craft room," I finally hit the jackpot today. I have been looking at various bookcases, cabinets, etc., but everything was more than I wanted to spend (hey, I spend money on important things like sock yarn and fiber and such--I know what's important). Last night I had found some inexpensive wire cubes on Target's website, but even still I would have to order them online and pay postage, and I still wasn't sold.

At lunch today I decided to run to Target to see what they had--mostly it was to kill time, but, you know, you never know what you'll find. And I lucked out. Target has all kinds of storage stuff on sale because it's back-to-school time, and I found the same wire cubes I had looked at last night on sale, but better! Packs of six cubes for $8 less than the four packs I had considered buying. Woo-hoo!

So now I have to figure out now to take this (pardon the lousy photo, but you get the idea)--


into something much more organized. I want to get at least a 4-foot folding table for one wall that I can use as a work table. I never have enough space to spread out when I want to. I have some posters that need to be framed, but I'm not sure that I'll have any free wall to hang them on. I'll have to wait and see.

Hopefully by Labor Day weekend I'll have something accomplished. I'm actually excited over the idea of cleaning the room--I can't wait to have my own personal "wall of fiber!"

Sock yarn stashers, here's your answer

to that age-old question--"Why do you buy so much sock yarn?"

Sheri’s Top Ten Reasons Why Sock Yarns Don’t Count As Stash

Sheri, you hit it right on the head!

Score one for the weatherman!

It's raining, baby! Par-tay!



I finished the Muppet guts yesterday. I really like the result:



Here's a closeup:

I ended up with about 320 yards. Hopefully this will be enough to make a little sweater for Missy's baby girl.

I couldn't leave the wheel empty, so I started this:


Four ounces of merino and tussah silk from Winderwood Farm. This was a birthday present from Missy--thanks, girl! I don't know what the percentage of merino to silk is, but it's very shiny.

It's raining like crazy right now, and the wind is really high, so I'll post more later this week. Hopefully it'll rain enough that I won't have to water my plants tonight!

Saturday Sky and Actual Knitting Content (TM)

This is a mid-day shot, as opposed to the early-morning ones I usually post. Exciting, huh?

Maggie and I stayed in bed until almost 9 this morning, and I still feel like I could take another long nap. I think too many days of high temps is getting to all of us. A lot of people I know have curtailed their activities to what can be done in the early morning and on the way home from work. The rest of the time they're staying inside. I can assure you that I'm in that group.

As for Actual Knitting Content (TM), look what the cashmere's becoming:


I decided on Wendy Johnson's Fan and Feather Scarf, and it's really nice. The best thing about this pattern--it's lace and it's easy enough for me not to screw up. Here's a closeup:


The colors actually tilt more toward the dark purples and blues with tiny shots of lighter purples, blues, and pinks throughout. It's really quite nice yarn, and I can't wait to see how it comes out.

I do remember that I commented last weekend that I was going to try the two socks on one circular thing. I spent a few hours last Sunday playing with this, and I came to the conclusion that, for me, this is just way too fiddly to mess with. Yes, 5 needles is just as bad, but I can handle that. I think that it takes just as much time to fiddle with the circular needle as it does for me to readjust from one needle to the next. I'm also not crazy about the stress put on the sock from pulling it all over the place to move it. So the verdict is that I'm sticking with my toothpicks--they work just fine for me. If I want to knit two socks at once, it'll be with two sets of toothpicks!

However, I have found a new toe-up cast on that I really like--the figure 8. I like this much better than the provisional cast on I've been doing. You do have to adjust it a bit in the beginning to get the stitches nice and even, but I still think it's pretty easy.

I've not touched my spinning this week, and I'm sure the Muppet guts are lonely, so that's on the agenda for today--if I can stay awake.

Graphic portrayal of what my day was like today

Blech.

On the other hand, one of these envelopes contains the pilot for "Studio 60 on the Sunset Strip," which makes me a very happy person.

Maggie would just rather I washed her window--she can't see very well.

A girl comes home from a hard day's work . . .

and all she wants is something to satisfy her, something to stimulate her senses, something to get her all hot and bothered (more than she already is from the heatwave we're having).

So what would fit the bill? (Okay, get your minds out of the gutter.)

This worked wonders:


(Maggie's acting as my personal Homeland Security inspector.)

I'm sure my mailman's wondering what the hell I'm buying in these big boxes that don't weigh anything--yes, it's fiber.

Wanna see?

This was the first box--isn't this pretty?


Two pressies from Yarn Botanica, one of my new favorite places. The sack contains "The Traveler - Spindle Kit," and it's absolutely gorgeous:


The ladies at Yarn Botanika put together these great little sock knitting and spindle kits. The bag is from Knitted Bits, the tiny little spindle is from Woolyvines, and the handpainted roving (blue faced leicester in "Santa Fe Nights" colorway) is from Yarn Botanika. I'm absolutely in love with it all, and look, I've already taken the fiber out for a spin:


The little bag on the left contained this tiny gem:


It's 100% pure cashmere, fingering weight, in the colorway "Midnight." It actually is much darker and more dark blue and purpley than this photo shows. I'm thinking maybe Wendy's Feather and Fan scarf for this. Or I may just keep it as a pet.

And the second box--well, the second box is a bit embarassing. After having a particularly bad day last week, I came home and ordered more fiber from Crown Mountain Farms. Remember how I've been so obsessed lately with pink?


I rhink I've moved into my orange period. Maybe it's a subconscious pining for Fall. There's 3 bundles of superwash merino and 4 of Corriedale pencil roving. It makes my fingers itch just to look at it.

And now, as penance for such extravagance, I want to publicly apologize to Wendy for mocking her for buying so much sock yarn (look at the end of the posting).

People who live in glass houses shouldn't throw stones.

And I'm waaaay too chicken to put all my purchases together and post it on the internets.

Mirror Mirror - The Passion of Hypocrites

This is a great article about the whole Mel Gibson debacle:

The Blog Larisa Alexandrovna: Mirror Mirror - The Passion of Hypocrites

Sunday morning update

First bobbin of "Muppet guts" - finished:


Double plying the last half of the superwash merino "It Takes Two, Baby" from Crown Mountain Farms - finished:


This second skein came out a little smaller and darker than the first (first skein on the right and second on the left):


The first part of the fiber had more undyed spots than the last, but I think they're both equally pretty. The second skein was plyed a little more tightly than the first and came out at about 220 yards, with a total from 8 ounces of fiber resulting in about 544 yards. Whoo-hoo!

And, finally, my first attempt at beading since I was a kid:


Not bad for making up the pattern as I go along. The worst part is that I'm so blind anymore that I have a hard time seeing what I'm doing. I'm doing at least half of it by feel, so it slows me down a bit.

I hope to finish the second half of "Muppet guts" today, and I also want to start the "socks on a circ" thing. This means I have to choose a sock yarn and then wind it into two skeins.

How will I ever decide which yarn to use?

Saturday Sky - more of the same

Saturday, August 5, 9 am:


I know I sound like a broken record, but it's HOT. The "breaks" we've had this week have been 99, 98--double-digits instead of triple digits, but with the higher humidity, it still feels like 100s to me. We had a gullywasher of a storm blow through late Thursday afternoon around 5 pm, and it dropped the temp about 20 degrees, but before the sun went down it was back in the high 80s with lots of humidity. It was absolutely miserable. Another short rainstorm early Friday morning, and that's been it for our "break" in the weather.

And as if there's any wonder why my plants have been burned to a crisp, look at this. Remember my walkway gets direct early-morning sun, and at 9 am it was about 80 degrees, but the thermometer read:


Spontaneous combustion, anyone?

Is it Friday yet?

Seriously, is it really only Tuesday? Work has been slamming me hard the last few days, and I'm too tired when I come home to do much more than sit and wish for it to get dark so I can go to bed. Pathetic, huh?

I finished spinning the last of the beautimus superwash "It Takes Two, Baby" fiber Sunday afternoon. I'll ply it this weekend. So after much careful deliberation, I chose the following for my next spinning adventure:


This is hand-dyed Falkland fiber from FaerieLady Fibers. This lovely young lady is a member of my spinning group, and her fiber is really wonderful. Several of my spinning friends call this color "Muppet Guts" because they think it resembles what Elmo would look like if he exploded. I don't care, I love it. The colors are hot, hot, hot--so hot that I hope they tone down a little after plying. It's a great summer color combination, and yes, I'm still feeding this insane 'pink' thing I've got going lately.

I'm hoping there will be enough here to make a certain baby girl a little sweater or some such thing. Actually, it would be a bribe, because the last time I saw her she didn't like me very much. (Can you bribe a three month old?)

I'm really kinda happy with myself right now, because I also seem to have picked up some steam on the sock knitting thing. If I keep this up, Sock #2 will be finished pretty quickly. And then I can start something new and yummy--whoo-hoo!

And as if that's not enough, I've bought a couple of bead looms and am planning to make my downstairs neighbor girl a bracelet of some sort in pinks and purples (again with the pinks!).

I guess I should just be happy that I have any desire to do anything with it being so hot. I can't wait to see my next electric bill--I may have to hock some fiber to pay it.

And if that statement doesn't prove I'm suffering from heat exhaustion, I don't know what will.