Sunday, July 30, 2006
Self-Portrait with the Shiva Monster
It's just the kitty and me today, so in between bits of mindbogglingly dull stockinette knitting, I'm chasing Shiva around the house taking pictures. Here we are with the french door.
Exciting, aren't we? :)
Exciting, aren't we? :)
Friday, July 28, 2006
I'll miss you, too.
Last night I told one of my favorite co-workers that I would be leaving next week. We talked about it for awhile, and then she sighed. I asked her what was wrong, predicting that she would say she was jealous, that she wanted a new job, too.
Instead, she said, "Once you're gone, I'll be the biggest dork here."
Instead, she said, "Once you're gone, I'll be the biggest dork here."
Wednesday, July 26, 2006
Famous knitters should come to Oklahoma more often.
The Yarn Harlot rawked the Village Library last night, y'all! She RAWKED it!
If you ever have a chance to see Stephanie on her book tour, you should go. It was really great to sit in a room full of knitters, meet some fellow bloggers (Hi Sue and Emma!), see what everybody is working on, and listen to Stephanie talk shop for a couple hours. And also, she's just hilarious.
The Scarf That Must Not Be Named made a rare public appearance to see the Harlot, and actually received lots of compliments, which made him feel much less self-conscious about his wonky stitches and issues with gauge. One young girl even requested his picture! He also enjoyed mingling with Rosemary's Gryffindor scarf at the book signing. (And if Rosemary finishes her scarf before me while simultaneously knitting a sweater, a shawl, socks, and God knows what else....I, um, won't be surprised).
I had a great evening. Thank you, Stephanie, and thank you to Gourmet Yarn and the OKC Knitter's Guild. And lookee here! The Yarn Harlot is not nearly as intimidating as Ethan Hawke, famous knitter though she may be. I have the autograph to prove it. :) 
If you ever have a chance to see Stephanie on her book tour, you should go. It was really great to sit in a room full of knitters, meet some fellow bloggers (Hi Sue and Emma!), see what everybody is working on, and listen to Stephanie talk shop for a couple hours. And also, she's just hilarious.The Scarf That Must Not Be Named made a rare public appearance to see the Harlot, and actually received lots of compliments, which made him feel much less self-conscious about his wonky stitches and issues with gauge. One young girl even requested his picture! He also enjoyed mingling with Rosemary's Gryffindor scarf at the book signing. (And if Rosemary finishes her scarf before me while simultaneously knitting a sweater, a shawl, socks, and God knows what else....I, um, won't be surprised).I had a great evening. Thank you, Stephanie, and thank you to Gourmet Yarn and the OKC Knitter's Guild. And lookee here! The Yarn Harlot is not nearly as intimidating as Ethan Hawke, famous knitter though she may be. I have the autograph to prove it. :) Tuesday, July 25, 2006
All I really need is a large margarita.
As you can probably intuit from my last post, I've been a bit tense lately. Starting a new career should be an exciting time, yet I've immediately transformed into one big ball of stress. If I go ten minutes without worrying, my brain clicks into auto-pilot and finds a new source of anxiety for me, sometimes job-related and sometimes not. Unfortunately for my friends and family, I have not been able to find the auto-pilot button to turn my brain off.
Except that one night last week at Cheddar's when I requested the large margarita. That turned it off nicely, I must say.
Anyway, last night Rick and I were discussing my current uptight/stressed-out/weight of the world on my shoulders/fear of the future issues AGAIN (sorry, Rickus, but thank you for being there). Suddenly Rick said, "Look, you've got to look at these new changes in contrast. You once quit you're job, packed your stuff, and moved sixteen hundred miles away to a town you'd never seen, where you didn't have any job prospects or know anyone there. So why are you so afraid now?"
It made me laugh at my own ridiculousness, and this morning, I finally feel better. Things are going to be all right. Now I'm off for a Big Love marathon at my mom's house and tonight, it's The Yarn Harlot. In person! Yeehaw!
Except that one night last week at Cheddar's when I requested the large margarita. That turned it off nicely, I must say.
Anyway, last night Rick and I were discussing my current uptight/stressed-out/weight of the world on my shoulders/fear of the future issues AGAIN (sorry, Rickus, but thank you for being there). Suddenly Rick said, "Look, you've got to look at these new changes in contrast. You once quit you're job, packed your stuff, and moved sixteen hundred miles away to a town you'd never seen, where you didn't have any job prospects or know anyone there. So why are you so afraid now?"
It made me laugh at my own ridiculousness, and this morning, I finally feel better. Things are going to be all right. Now I'm off for a Big Love marathon at my mom's house and tonight, it's The Yarn Harlot. In person! Yeehaw!
Monday, July 24, 2006
Scaredy-Cat
I am the world's biggest scaredy-cat. I am afraid of snails and crickets and moths (oh my!), and I am apparently scared stiff by change. So afraid that even though I haven't been happy with my job for oh, I don't know, one or two years now, I haven't done anything about it.
Until now. A bad experience at my job in June became the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. In fact, that experience caused me to go on a cleaning rampage the likes of which this house has never seen. (Do y'all remember? I even cleaned the french door windows!). After that experience, I vowed to find another job. It took me a month just to work up the courage to update my resume (because y'all know what updated resumes mean, right? Interviews. Yuck.), but I've finally found a new job. Two weeks from now, I will start a career in home health, working during the weekDAYS like an honest-to-God normal human being. No longer will I have to try to sleep while five neighborhood men mow their lawns simultaneously.
Hallelujah!
Except for that scaredy-cat thing. Despite, the many, many things that I dislike about my current job, I'm very comfortable in it. And now that I've put in my two weeks notice, I'm thinking of all the things I like about the job. I will miss my coworkers (particularly the ones who bring me home-cooked Indian food!), I will miss starting IV's (my favorite nursing skill), and I will definitely miss having a schedule in which it's possible to have eight days off in a row without using up a single vacation day. I get nervous thinking about all the possible ways to screw up in this new job, and I wonder if I'm making a mistake because there could be a lot of opportunities at this current job once I get my degree.
And then I think of the fact that just by handing in my two weeks notice, I now get to go to my nephew's birthday party AND the upcoming Harry and the Potters show. Suddenly, I'm excited again! I think I'll be all right...as long as I don't encounter too many snails or crickets or moths.
Until now. A bad experience at my job in June became the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. In fact, that experience caused me to go on a cleaning rampage the likes of which this house has never seen. (Do y'all remember? I even cleaned the french door windows!). After that experience, I vowed to find another job. It took me a month just to work up the courage to update my resume (because y'all know what updated resumes mean, right? Interviews. Yuck.), but I've finally found a new job. Two weeks from now, I will start a career in home health, working during the weekDAYS like an honest-to-God normal human being. No longer will I have to try to sleep while five neighborhood men mow their lawns simultaneously.
Hallelujah!
Except for that scaredy-cat thing. Despite, the many, many things that I dislike about my current job, I'm very comfortable in it. And now that I've put in my two weeks notice, I'm thinking of all the things I like about the job. I will miss my coworkers (particularly the ones who bring me home-cooked Indian food!), I will miss starting IV's (my favorite nursing skill), and I will definitely miss having a schedule in which it's possible to have eight days off in a row without using up a single vacation day. I get nervous thinking about all the possible ways to screw up in this new job, and I wonder if I'm making a mistake because there could be a lot of opportunities at this current job once I get my degree.
And then I think of the fact that just by handing in my two weeks notice, I now get to go to my nephew's birthday party AND the upcoming Harry and the Potters show. Suddenly, I'm excited again! I think I'll be all right...as long as I don't encounter too many snails or crickets or moths.
Sunday, July 23, 2006
Self-Portrait with Captain Kirk...
Thursday, July 20, 2006
Another sign I've gone over the edge?
I don't what this thing is really...
Some kind of screw with a piece of rubber maybe? I don't know. Whatever it is, though, it's on my house. I had never noticed it before, but the other day, I walked passed it and saw it out of the corner of my eye.
It scared the crap out of me. Perhaps I can blame it on the fact that I was not expecting anything to be there at all, but my honest reaction, as my heart palpitated and my legs jumped backward, was, "Oh my God! It's a snail!"
Great. I guess I can add that one to my list of fears.
Heights.
Public speaking.
Rick's driving.
And, um,...snails.
Some kind of screw with a piece of rubber maybe? I don't know. Whatever it is, though, it's on my house. I had never noticed it before, but the other day, I walked passed it and saw it out of the corner of my eye.
It scared the crap out of me. Perhaps I can blame it on the fact that I was not expecting anything to be there at all, but my honest reaction, as my heart palpitated and my legs jumped backward, was, "Oh my God! It's a snail!"
Great. I guess I can add that one to my list of fears.
Heights.
Public speaking.
Rick's driving.
And, um,...snails.
Monday, July 17, 2006
The slowest knitter on Earth finally goes over the edge.
Check it out. I'm knitting Gryffindor leg warmers for the costuming enthusiast. What Quidditch fan wouldn't want a set of these under their wizard robes during those cold winter matches?
Okay, okay. It's really just Rick's Gryffindor scarf-in-progress. I just needed a break from row after row after row of mindless stockinette on circular needles. A month of knitting and this scarf is still only three feet long!
I mean, Look! I've finished an entire leg warmer and only have one more to go!!!! Yeah, that's it!
(You know, all those exclamation points didn't stimulate the endorphins nearly the way I imagined they would. Back to more super slow knitting. Henceforth I shall refer to this scarf as The Scarf That Must Not Be Named.)
(Also, please excuse the Teva tan. My super cute toes apologize for the tops of my feet.)
Sunday, July 16, 2006
Self-Portrait of Foot with Cat
Sometimes my destroyer kitty Shiva likes to chase my toes and bite them. Other times, she's just too tired for all that effort. That's when she opts to just cuddle with them and see if she can lick them to death.
Wednesday, July 12, 2006
Late Bloomers
All the crepe myrtles in my neighborhood are in full bloom, soaking up our Oklahoma sun. According to my mom and grandma, my main gardening advisers, crepe myrtles love the heat and don't need much water. This makes them the perfect plant for my backyard, because I still tend to forget that I actually have a backyard, and let's just say, nothing back there is in danger of over-watering.
I have two crepe myrtles and apparently, they are late bloomers. The little buds have been there for weeks, waiting for what, I don't know. The poor things are probably pretty self-conscious about it as it is, so it's a good thing they aren't in the front yard, checking out all the glory of the girls down the street. My little plants aren't even in training bras yet.
(But that's okay. They are still pretty, especially when you take their pictures with a NEW CAMERA! Woohoo! Katie's learning to crop photos like a big girl!)
I have two crepe myrtles and apparently, they are late bloomers. The little buds have been there for weeks, waiting for what, I don't know. The poor things are probably pretty self-conscious about it as it is, so it's a good thing they aren't in the front yard, checking out all the glory of the girls down the street. My little plants aren't even in training bras yet.
(But that's okay. They are still pretty, especially when you take their pictures with a NEW CAMERA! Woohoo! Katie's learning to crop photos like a big girl!)
Monday, July 10, 2006
Who wants more river pictures?
If you answered "Not me!", you'd best turn back now. I'm all about the pictures, baby.
Like I eluded to in one of my last posts, I think the Buffalo River is one of the prettiest places in America. Nestled in the Ozark Mountains of Northwest Arkansas, the river is surrounded by lush forests, huge bluffs, and tons of wildlife. The entire first day of canoeing, we didn't see any other people. We didn't have to share those twelve miles of wildnerness with anyone, and for an anti-social such as myself, that's about as close to a perfect vacation as it gets.
As you can see, I took my knitting with me. I was worried about what would happen to my precious wool if the canoe were to tip, so I packed it in a Ziploc bag and hoped for the best. We never tipped, but I ended up not knitting at all, as I just didn't feel like it with all the layers of sunscreen and bug spray on. Next time, I'll bring it strictly as car knitting.
Rick and I decided we'd like to canoe the entire length of the Buffalo River (no, not at one time!). So it looks like we'll be headed back year after year for awhile. 21 miles down....114 miles to go!
Sunday, July 09, 2006
Self-Portrait Sunday with the Buffalo River
This pic is from last Thursday, the first day of our paddling trip down the Buffalo River in Northwest Arkansas. I already can't wait to go back.Tuesday, July 04, 2006
Happy Fourth!
Ever since I read the biography of John Adams by David McCullough (easily titled John Adams, thank you Author!), I have wondered why we celebrate our Independence Day on the fourth of July. Sure, it's the day that everyone approved Jefferson's wording of the Declaration of Independence. Oh wait, I take that back. They didn't all approve, and actually changed it up a bit before signing. They were probably arguing about what the definition of "is" is.
Anyway, it bothers me that we celebrate the signing of the declaration, when (in my frequently not so humble opinion) we ought to celebrate the decision to declare independence. The vote to declare. And that vote occurred on July 2, 1776. In fact, I just looked up Independence Day on Wikipedia (good God, how I love Wikipedia), and there is a quote from John Adams right here:
"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."
Now, I must admit I have a couple issues with this statement. The first being that I don't really feel the need to celebrate anything with guns. Please, listen to me, not John Adams, and leave your guns at home when you celebrate. Especially if I'm going to be in attendance. Thank you.
Second issue: he's talking about celebrating "from one end of this continent to the other". What direction is he implying? Does he mean from the north end to the south end, or from the east end to the west end? Was Manifest Destiny already present here? Do I need to look up Manifest Destiny on Wikipedia? Why not? It's 4:13 in the morning and I'm supposed to be packing for a little trip but instead I'm blog-hopping and also, maybe, watching movies.
The point of all this (ha! You thought I'd forgotten!), is that the second of July WAS ROBBED. Oh well. I guess we got the pomp and parade and shows right, even if we do it on the wrong day. I mean you no disrespect, you fourth day of July, you. I'm just saying is all.
Now I think I'll knit a little on my Harry Potter scarf. Though I think Mr. Adams would probably disapprove of me spending Independence day morning knitting a scarf based off the one worn by my favorite British wizards.
P.S. Knitting scarves in the round means it takes twice as long to finish. Therefore, imagine I actually have 3 feet done instead of 1.5. If you are capable of this leap of the imagination, then by all means, go ahead and also pretend that my stitches are even and my rows of color are the same size.
P.P.S. I'll be out of town the next several days. We're headed to what I think is one of America's prettiest places. More when I return.
P.P.P.S. For a laugh, read the "Picnics and Barbecues" section from the Wikipedia link above. Funny how I never knew that peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are standard Fourth of July party food. (And just so you know, no more post-scripts after this, I swear). Happy Fourth!
Anyway, it bothers me that we celebrate the signing of the declaration, when (in my frequently not so humble opinion) we ought to celebrate the decision to declare independence. The vote to declare. And that vote occurred on July 2, 1776. In fact, I just looked up Independence Day on Wikipedia (good God, how I love Wikipedia), and there is a quote from John Adams right here:
"The second day of July, 1776, will be the most memorable epoch in the history of America. I am apt to believe that it will be celebrated by succeeding generations as the great anniversary festival. It ought to be commemorated as the day of deliverance, by solemn acts of devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with pomp and parade, with shows, games, sports, guns, bells, bonfires, and illuminations, from one end of this continent to the other, from this time forward forever more."
Now, I must admit I have a couple issues with this statement. The first being that I don't really feel the need to celebrate anything with guns. Please, listen to me, not John Adams, and leave your guns at home when you celebrate. Especially if I'm going to be in attendance. Thank you.
Second issue: he's talking about celebrating "from one end of this continent to the other". What direction is he implying? Does he mean from the north end to the south end, or from the east end to the west end? Was Manifest Destiny already present here? Do I need to look up Manifest Destiny on Wikipedia? Why not? It's 4:13 in the morning and I'm supposed to be packing for a little trip but instead I'm blog-hopping and also, maybe, watching movies.
The point of all this (ha! You thought I'd forgotten!), is that the second of July WAS ROBBED. Oh well. I guess we got the pomp and parade and shows right, even if we do it on the wrong day. I mean you no disrespect, you fourth day of July, you. I'm just saying is all.
Now I think I'll knit a little on my Harry Potter scarf. Though I think Mr. Adams would probably disapprove of me spending Independence day morning knitting a scarf based off the one worn by my favorite British wizards.
P.S. Knitting scarves in the round means it takes twice as long to finish. Therefore, imagine I actually have 3 feet done instead of 1.5. If you are capable of this leap of the imagination, then by all means, go ahead and also pretend that my stitches are even and my rows of color are the same size.P.P.S. I'll be out of town the next several days. We're headed to what I think is one of America's prettiest places. More when I return.
P.P.P.S. For a laugh, read the "Picnics and Barbecues" section from the Wikipedia link above. Funny how I never knew that peanut butter and jelly sandwiches are standard Fourth of July party food. (And just so you know, no more post-scripts after this, I swear). Happy Fourth!
Sunday, July 02, 2006
Self-Portrait with my Saturday.
I had a great first day of July--things are already looking better than in June.
We had a great breakfast at Ingrid's, a bakery and cafe at NW 36th and Youngs Blvd. in OKC. They serve a great breakfast, and despite the fact that it's a German restaurant and quite heavy on the meat, they were very helpful about making vegetarian substitutions. And their bread? Yum. You have to buy it fresh early in the morning before they run out!
Next we drove to Guthrie for a visit to SWAK so I could use up a gift card that's been burning a hole in my pocket since Christmas.
I showed amazing restraint and walked out of the store with only a couple skeins of Sirdar Snuggly for the Razor Cami and a couple skeins of Reynolds Blizzard for a scarf that I saw in the store. The Blizzard yarn was a total impulse buy because that scarf was SO DAMN SOFT! I rubbed it on my face when the salespeople weren't watching and instantly went back to the front door for a basket to carry my purchases.
The single biggest purchase was a ball winder. I've resisted buying one because I actually like the process of winding my own balls (insert joke here!). Or at least, I did like winding them until last week when it took me two hours to wind one ball of Alpaca Cloud. Yeah. So now I have a winder! I didn't buy a swift because I've seen on blogs that people do okay without one and that would have cut an extra $40 out of my gift card!
Later, we had dinner at my mom's followed by an evening of knitting and a fireworks show. Which brings me to my oh-so-beautiful Sunday portrait. As Rick was trying to take a picture of me knitting, my mom reached over to lift my skirt so I would flash not only my husband but the entire park. Hence the facial expression, a mixture of smiling for the camera and complete surprise. :)
We had a great breakfast at Ingrid's, a bakery and cafe at NW 36th and Youngs Blvd. in OKC. They serve a great breakfast, and despite the fact that it's a German restaurant and quite heavy on the meat, they were very helpful about making vegetarian substitutions. And their bread? Yum. You have to buy it fresh early in the morning before they run out!
Next we drove to Guthrie for a visit to SWAK so I could use up a gift card that's been burning a hole in my pocket since Christmas.
I showed amazing restraint and walked out of the store with only a couple skeins of Sirdar Snuggly for the Razor Cami and a couple skeins of Reynolds Blizzard for a scarf that I saw in the store. The Blizzard yarn was a total impulse buy because that scarf was SO DAMN SOFT! I rubbed it on my face when the salespeople weren't watching and instantly went back to the front door for a basket to carry my purchases.
The single biggest purchase was a ball winder. I've resisted buying one because I actually like the process of winding my own balls (insert joke here!). Or at least, I did like winding them until last week when it took me two hours to wind one ball of Alpaca Cloud. Yeah. So now I have a winder! I didn't buy a swift because I've seen on blogs that people do okay without one and that would have cut an extra $40 out of my gift card!
Later, we had dinner at my mom's followed by an evening of knitting and a fireworks show. Which brings me to my oh-so-beautiful Sunday portrait. As Rick was trying to take a picture of me knitting, my mom reached over to lift my skirt so I would flash not only my husband but the entire park. Hence the facial expression, a mixture of smiling for the camera and complete surprise. :)
Saturday, July 01, 2006
As if anyone needs further proof that knitting is a good thing.
Last night, a patient of mine showed me a wallet photo of his newest great-granddaughter. She was six months old at the time of the portrait and was wearing an adorable knitted lace dress. When I asked if the outfit was homemade, he explained that in fact, it was. The dress had been made by his mother and had passed from his sister to all the infant girls in the family for the last eighty years. Eighty years!
What an accomplishment, keeping such a tradition alive for that long. Nowadays, it's so easy to buy items cheap rather than make them ourselves, and isn't this especially true for baby clothes? Why bother when they will grow out of them so quickly? But how wonderful that this family has bothered, that they appreciate the work of their ancestor's hands.
My patient was obviously proud, of both his great-granddaughter and this family heirloom. What memories the picture must conjure for him. And what a wonderful legacy his mother left with that one hand-knit dress.
(P. S. Did I actually just use the word "nowadays"? Guess I'm getting old and sentimental.) :)
What an accomplishment, keeping such a tradition alive for that long. Nowadays, it's so easy to buy items cheap rather than make them ourselves, and isn't this especially true for baby clothes? Why bother when they will grow out of them so quickly? But how wonderful that this family has bothered, that they appreciate the work of their ancestor's hands.
My patient was obviously proud, of both his great-granddaughter and this family heirloom. What memories the picture must conjure for him. And what a wonderful legacy his mother left with that one hand-knit dress.
(P. S. Did I actually just use the word "nowadays"? Guess I'm getting old and sentimental.) :)
