Same Old Song and Dance

I have now started stripe five on the stripy shawl and from the looks of it I am almost certain that it will need a sixth stripe at least. I've been working on it because I am hesitant to start any projects that might require thought at the moment. Plus, Rambo the co-worker loaned me his copy of Oil! by Upton Sinclair which was the basis for the movie There Will Be Blood. I have been reading it in between reality tv shows. I really like Upton Sinclair's style of writing, I had read The Jungle in gifted and talented class back in middle school and found it to be fascinating (and gross). So this book is sucking up my crochet time, but that's okay since this book needs to be returned by the time I move.

Not much is really going on right now. I have been sitting around waiting on the stupid Relocation people to call me back which is annoying me to no end. I should have more to report after this weekend's festivities are over

Playing on my ipod: Love Remains the Same - Gavin Rossdale (I heard this on last night's episode of The Hills and loved it so much I had to download it because I have always been a fan of Gavin's music).

I heart Malabrigo

So I was just going to edit today's earlier post and add on, but my experience with Malabrigo was so amazing that I thought it deserved its own post.

I went to Loops today because I needed a skein of yarn for the Swap on a Budget swap on ravelry. I had read a post earlier in the week saying that they had received a shipment of Malabrigo. For those of you that possibly live under a tree, Malabrigo is this AMAZING pure merino wool from Uruguay. This was my first time to see and touch it in person. IT IS SOOOOOO SOFT!!!!I bought one skein in this bright royal blue for my swap spoilee and one skein of black to make the bag I liked in my new crochet book. The colors are so bright and vibrant and amazing. the price wasn't as bad as I thought it would be but I am definitely glad I was able to buy this in store and not online. I love how the name rolls of my tongue too. I was in yarn heaven.I just stood there staring at it like it was some jewel, I was completely drawn to it. If I wasn't buying a Coach purse this coming week I think I would have bought a hell of a lot more of Malabrigo.

then I bought two balls of Berroco Comfort DK in color #2813. this is Rainbow Brite colored and I was so drawn to the colors that I had to buy some.

I started a lime green dishcloth this afternoon and I finished color three on the stripy shawl and started color #4. I am really impressed with my color changing abilities.

I bought A-dolly's birthday present at Michaels today and I bought Knit-Aid, bitch magazine, and An Irish Country Doctor by Patrick Taylor. The Knit-Aid book is by Vickie Howell and it is really awesome! It is going to be really handy. The Patrick Taylor's book is supposed to be my plane book but I imagine I will be reading it before then.

Anyways, I came in on target for my budget so I am stoked. In fact, I think I was a tad under. YAY FOR ME!!!!

All in all, it was a pretty successful day. I felt the need to do a lot of this stuff this weekend since things are going to be really crazy with the whole move thing and this was my last free weekend.

Scarfy Scarves

I have made three scarves this week. Two for the GLBT Inclusion Project and one for L at the request of her mother. L's scarf is a rainbow fun fur scarf because she likes to play dress up with them. The GLBT Inclusion scarves are made out of one skein each of Red Heart Mexicana. I mailed them off this morning. I felted the doggie bed this morning. The Bernat felting wool definitely felts up more then the Lion Wool did but I am really pleased with how both beds turned out.

My sister is at work this morning so I am waiting for her to get off work and then we are going shopping in Tulsa. I am stoked because we are going to Barnes and Noble. I could go there every single day and still get excited. I have made a shopping list so that I can stay focused. LOL. I need to find a good book to read on the plane and I need some yarn. Maybe I should say that I want some more yarn.

Anyways, I am really really really excited because I get to see Sunshine and we get to play hooky from work! It is going to be a blast.

On my ipod: After Tonight by Justin Nozuka

Lol. I will probably add to this post after I get back from T-Town to tell ya'll how bad I was.

80 degrees and still playing with wool

How come when it is like 80 degrees outside all I want to do is crochet with WOOL? My sister and I are trying to resist the air conditioner for as long as possible (especially with all the hot/cool weather we have had recently) so we have not turned on the air conditioner yet in the house. I should be making little cotton dishcloths instead of planning out my next felting projects. I went to town on the dog bed and now I am halfway done with the last side. I am not sure if I will finish tonight or not. The cat bed is dry now and it looks really awesome with and without the sides folded down. The sides are folded down in the original pattern but I strayed from the pattern and added a final row of fun fur as the trim because it is a cat bed and it needed some flair and a little kick of color. My next projects are going to be felted purses from the crochet book I bought yesterday.

I thought about taking a picture of my stash, but I decided not to because it all fits in one of those orange plastic tubs so it doesn't really look that impressive. I was looking through it today to take inventory of it because I am in some more swaps on Ravelry. You have to fill out all these questionnaires about what you like or collect or use. it takes me forever to fill these out because i don't have a LYS in town so I don't really have fancy taste. Even if I went on a yarn buying spree, I would still have plenty of space for it even in the new apartment.

I dropped my sister off at the library this afternoon and came home with five books. One poetry book, two crafty books, one earthy book and one autobiography.

I am proud of myself because I actually did my online homework this morning instead of waiting until the very last minute tonight like I normally do. This is a good thing because my tv shows FINALLY RETURN this week. YAY!!!!

5 PM Update: I finished the dog bed! Kind of. It is all finished and seamed together except for the felting part. Our laundry is all done so I don't have anything to felt it with. it looks cool but I think it will look better once it is felted because it will stand up better. I used almost five balls. there is a tiny bit left from ball 5 of the Bernat Felting Wool. This yarn only has 84 yards compared to the 158 yards per ball of Lion Wool that I used for the cat bed which I ended up using 3 balls and a little bit of fun fur to make.

F is for French and Felting

It was like 75 degrees today. Yesterday morning it was a breezy 50. I wish the weather would level out a little because it is driving my allergies crazy. I am very proud of myself because I finished the cat bed for Sunshine's cat today. It is drying on top of a box to keep its shape. It turned out better than I could have imagined. Now that it is finished, I have started the side piece for the dog bed version. I am using a bulkier wool for the dog bed so it might crochet a little faster but I don't know. I have been having issues sitting still long enough to crochet.

My movie streak continues. Last night I finally watched Into the Wild. I wish I could live that simply. Loved the book, the soundtrack and the movie. That rarely happens.In between films I have been watching Sex in the City Season 2 and tonight's movie is Paris, Je T'Aaime. Yes, they speak French in this movie and it is really fast but I am resisting turning on the English captions because I think they distract from the movie and the French language sounds really pretty.

I bought the book The Chicks with Sticks Guide to Crochet. I don't really need another how-to book but this one had some really cool patterns that I want to try someday. Plus, I really liked the layout of the book too. I found a couple of things for my spoilee in the Swap on A Budget (through Ravelry) which is a good thing. I made very good use of the 40% off coupon at Hobby Lobby this week.

These last couple of weekends have been fairly laid back and quiet which might possibly be a good thing because I know the month of May is going to be like a total tornado.

It Smells Like Dead Worms

Yes, it ended up raining again today. This time it waited until i was driving through Talala on my way to Owasso. My audit class didn't meet today and since i had already worked my hours, I decided to go straight to Owasso from work (therefore conserving gas). Normally I park and walk to all the stores but I ended up driving from store to store since it was raining so hard. Old Navy turned out to be a bust. I made my final attempt to buy a pair of flip flops for my sister but since her feet are completely flat, their new flip flop design doesn't work for her. anyways, I can't wear this pair because it is a size ten so she is just going to have to deal.

Next stop was Tar-Jay. I ended up buying Juno on DVD with screenplay and bonus digital copy. Then I bought boring stuff like Flat Earth Chips and paper towels and allergy medicine. Last stop was Hobby Lobby where I bought two more skeins of the Bernat Felting wool to finish the dog bed and a couple of things for the Swap on a Budget swap.

I came home and ended up stopping at wal-mart. I made the stupid mistake of trying to buy frozen pizza two days after everyone and their dog had a payday. I ended up getting the Juno soundtrack for $9 and Sex in the City Season 2 for $19.99 with a voucher for a free ticket to see the movie. This was the only season that I wasn't able to buy during the infamous Christmas sale. So, I will be watching that this weekend and definitely watching Juno again. I watched it as soon as I came home and I just love it. It feels like I spent a boatload of money, but I really didn't. Everything WAS PLANNED!!!!

Anyways, Sunshine, I would just like to let you know that you are the cheese to my macaroni. WINK WINK!!! I hope that you have fun on your band trips this weekend and by the time you come back I will be finished with the bed for your cat.

When I Come Around

The whole relocation thing is very exciting but it is really, really annoying. the paperwork won't be finished until sometime later this week or early next week and until it is finalized I can't buy plane tickets or seriously apply for an apartment. did I mention that I have to be there May 19th? LOL. I know that everything will work itself out but it just might drive me crazy in the meantime.

To top it off, there is all this family drama going on and none of it involves me but I get to hear about it all from everyone and they are all edgy.

All that aside, I am on the last side of Sunshine's cat bed. Once this side is done then I can stitch it all together, add the trim and then I get to felt it, which I think is the super fun part. I will definitely finish it this weekend if not a tad bit earlier. I am using black wool and I crochet slower with black yarn because we have no overhead lighting in our living room, so it makes it harder to see the stitches. I know, i know, I should buy a giant lamp but anyone that knows me right now knows that I really don't care about decorating stuff and I like the darkness.

Once I finish the cat bed, I will start working on the dog bed but I might have to buy more yarn for that because the pattern technically called for 6 balls of Bernat Felting yarn and my hobby lobby only had three in the color i wanted. The base piece took an entire skein so I don't think two skeins are going to do the sides. We will see. Hopefully they will get some more in because I don't want to have to drive to Owasso for it since gas decided to jump up to 3.19 this week and I am trying to conserve gas because of my soul-sucking commute that I will have until the end of May.

Anyways, tomorrow is pay day so after class I am going to the big box store to buy Juno on DVD and I am really excited about that. I did download new singles by Alanis Morrisette and Madonna this week, but I have found myself listening to Dookie-era Green Day. Grunge/alternative music is probably my most personal favorite type of music, if I was forced to pick just one type. Lord only knows what will end up on my ipod.

Hooks and Books

I finished the base for Sunshine's Cat bed today and I just started the second side while watching Anthony Bourdain's No Reservations Ireland episode on my Mac.He cracks me up and I lost track of the number of pints of Guinness he consumed during the episode.
Funny story about the felted boxes aka the doggie and cat beds. Since the actual pattern name is felted box, I assumed prior to seeing the pattern instructions, it would either be crocheted in the round or I would be making each individual piece and then seaming them together. So I made the base pieces for each bed and then I was going to start on the side pieces and I hit a wall. I was so confused, I had to call my Mommy and read the ENTIRE pattern to her out loud over the telly phone. It turns out that essentially you are making a scarf like piece that wraps around the base piece and then you fold the top down a little to give it a rolled look. Well, that is not what it sounded like when I originally read the pattern, so thank God for Mom's tech support. I don't usually make stuff from a pattern and this is probably one of the reasons why. These are going to turn out really awesome though, especially once they have been felted.

This morning I had to make an emergency run to wal-mart for more dryer sheets and some girly stuff. I really didn't want to go to Wal-Mart, but they are the cheapest place in town and we don't have a Target here. I was doing okay until I got in line and the cashier started scanning my stuff. She kind of had a surly dispostion and I really just wanted to get the hell out of there. She said some really rude things to me and if there weren't small children in line behind me I would have told her to go f-ck herself because I didn't ask her to talk to me and be all judgemental about my purchases (they were g-rated for the record).

So after that disaster, i decided to head to my little sanctuary, otherwise known as my local library. I checked out The Namesake and the Interpreter of Maladies by Jhumpa Lahiri. Her latest book ( i forget the title) wasn't on the shelves but I imagine that there is a big waiting list for it. Anyways, it took me forever to find them because someone had incorrectly shelved them in the midst of the "Left Behind" book series which I avoid like the plague. I had read The Namesake back when it first came out in 2003 but I hadn't read the Interpreter of Maladies which is her Pulitzer Prize winning collection of short stories. Since I had recently watched the movie adaptation of The Namesake, I wanted to re-read the book because I had noticed some subtle plot changes in the movie version but the movie basically follows the book. Jhumpa Lahiri has quickly become one of my new favorite authors.

I came back from the library and popped in Season 3 of Sex in the City (in preparation for the movie out May 30th) and spent the rest of the day in my big purple recliner reading and crocheting. I also watched a lot of Food Network shows. My idea of a good day off.

This week should be fun. Juno comes out on DVD which is also the series finale of Rob & Big (one of my guilty pleasures, i love sk8r bois). Work is kind of crazy but I don't have to work overtime, so I could care less.

Projects Galore

Yesterday I bought some felting wool and I finally found a copy of the Bernat Fun Felting leaflet so I am all set for a felting frenzy this weekend. I couldn't help myself and I have already started making the Felted Box aka the cute doggie bed. I think I have crochet ADD right now because I technically have three WIPs right now.

Today I was naughty and bought the Yarn Harlot's new book, the eco issue of Knit 1 and the latest issue of Rachael Ray's magazine. Oh, I almost forgot, I bought Jack Prelutsky's new book "Pizza,Pigs and Poetry: How to Write A Poem." Jack Prelutsky was one of the first poets that I discovered as a young book worm.

I have almost finished the base of the felted doggie bed. I am using Bernat Felting Natural Wool in New Iris and I think the color looks like the Gulf of Mexico. Lots of blues and aquas. I think tomorrow I might start working on the kitty bed. I like the felted box pattern so much that I am going to use that one for the kitty bed too. The kitty bed is going to be black with a red accent.

I am happy to report that my sewing machine manual and spare bobbins arrived from Mom's house today. I will add that to my project queue now. LOL. as if I need another craft project. The May issue of Esquire also arrived, so it was a very good Mailbox day.

I don't really have any plans for this week other than to lounge around and have crafty time.

Singers and Shawls, Oh MY!!!

I kind of feel like I'm in Seattle or something. We had Glorious Sunshine all weekend and then this morning, I wake up to a thunder and lightning show that continued on my commute. I ended up taking an 1 1/2 nap this evening which is unheard of. My sister apparently checked to see if I was still alive and I didn't even flinch. As a result, I am pretty wired right now and wide awake! WOOT!!!

So last night I went to A the co-worker's house to see if we could figure out the sewing machine that I got from my Mom when she moved. Mom had the manual there so we didn't have a picture to look at and apparently this machine is slightly high tech because it has an automatic bobbin winder thingy and we couldn't figure out how to trip it. Well, we ended up going to A's mom's house and we all determined we were going to need a picture, so I ended up using her sewing machine to finally finish Sunshine's bag. Anyways, My mom is so tickled pink that I am busting out the sewing machine that she is sending me the manual and the spare bobbins.

I started stripe three on the stripy shawl and I think I have found the pattern that I like for the felted cat bed. I think I will attempt the cat bed this weekend. I haven't crocheted in the round in awhile so this could be interesting. I can do it, I just choose not to because it requires counting and use of stitch markers if I want it to end up looking right. I think it will look fierce when it is finished.

On My Ipod: Panic at the Disco and The Breeders (special thanks to The Breeders for putting out an awesome record!)

Stuff

My poor Subaru. She has hauled 9 big black trash bags full o junk to the local Goodwill and only three of those were my sister's. There is another give away pile which is old toys that are going to little L up in KC. That is basically what I have been doing this weekend since it was nice weather. for some reason, nice weather peps me up and makes sorting and cleaning go faster.

I did walk to the post office to mail off a swap package for the Going Green swap and then i went back to the library. I picked up Ellie Krieger's new cookbook which has some nice recipes in it (with the nutritional breakdown) and I think they are not as complicated as some of the Top Chef recipes but still cool. I am never making panini in the Hello Kitty waffle maker again. It is a bitch to clean because you can't take it apart. L's mom A is supposed to keep her eye out for a cheap panini style thing. i looked at similar things here at the Wal-mart and I was not impressed. Plus, A cooks all the time and is cheap, so i know she will come up with some good options. Trisha Yearwood has also released a new cookbook that looks interesting.

While I was doing all that sorting, I came across my stash of yarn that I got for Christmas and found enough colors to make a striped shawl since I am going for fast and easy projects right now. I am please to say that my knitting basket and big orange yarn tub are only half fun. The wine box is full but those are mainly one skein specialty yarns that I have received in various swaps. I could fit it all in the orange tub if I wanted to.

Anyways, I got to read a sample chapter from Augusten Burroughs' new memoir about his father. I am on the e-mail list so they sent us a link to read the chapter and Tegan from Tegan & Sara wrote a song called His love that plays on the website for the book that sounds really cool. The book is called A Wolf at the Table and it comes out April 29th. I am lucky because some of my favorite authors are releasing new books this summer. I started reading Book Page at my library and that has really helped me find new books to read while I am waiting for the other books to come out.

My sister is spending the afternoon at the library grading papers so I am going to crochet on the striped shawl and watch Sideways because my sister hates that movie and I love it.

One last thing! They are opening an IKEA in Charlotte this Spring/Summer so I will end up being close to an IKEA after all.

Books and Booze

On my quest to discover food, I made panini for dinner tonight. I used wheat bread, hickory smoked turkey, hard salami and American cheese. I am sans the George grill and I lack a panini press so I squished them using the Hello Kitty Waffle Maker. It heats it up really nice but it makes the panini kinda goofy looking. I also discovered that it is a bitch to clean afterwards. For dessert, I had a low fat strawberry yogurt from Stoneyfield Farm. Yummy. Hopefully it doesn't make me sick, because I don't agree with dairy very well but I love dairy products (especially cheese and ice cream separately).

I have decided to keep the hat as is. the more I wore it the more it kind of grew on me once I decided that it looked like spilt Kool-Aid. Plus, my sister hates the colors, so that makes me like it more.

My sister's copy of Kurt Vonnegut's posthumous work Armageddon in Retrospect arrived today. I read several pages of it while she was at the gym this evening. There are more of his drawings, an intro by his son and the speech he was supposed to give but didn't because he died two weeks before the speech. I am a huge fan of his essays and of his work in general. He is one of the few authors that I consistently read over and over and one of the few that my sister and I jointly love.

Prior to the arrival of Vonnegut, I checked out Dress Your Family in Corderoy and Denim by David Sedaris, who is another one of my favorite authors. I can't wait for his new book to come out in June. Sometimes people ask me how I have the time to read so much and for me, I make the time. I read right before I go to bed every night even if it is just a couple of pages. It winds me down and it is relaxing. Reading a book is like a mental vitamin, only tastier.

I am supposed to be sorting through my crap, but I am not motivated at all. I just want to lay on the couch and read. I bought the puffin classics editions of The Wizard of Oz and The Secret Garden. I also want to read Bridge to Terabithia again. I was very naughty and bought the April issue of Food & Wine, which I have lovingly dubbed "the booze issue" because it features America's Best Wines. I am still working on the liking wine thing. Right now my favorite wine is Beringer's White ZInfandel. Lol. It is like $7-11 depending on the bottle size.

C is for Crazy

Okay, this has week has been a little crazy. Sunday started off good. Sunshine made Eggs in a Hole from the Top Chef cookbook and we paired it with banana slices and bacon (i am hopelessly addicted to bacon, it is my favorite part of breakfast). Then we spent the majority of the day lounging around and watching Make Me a Supermodel. I heart Perry and I need Ronnie to take me clothes shopping. the prayer shawl is finished now except for the fringe part. I made myself a hat with the Reynolds Smile yarn that I bought in Joplin on Saturday, but the colors didn't stripe like I thought they were going to so I might rip it all out and use a different pattern.

It has been rainy and wet and misty all week and so my allergies are driving me crazy and I just want to chill on the couch with an epic novel.

The big news is that I found out where I am transfering to at the end of May. I get to go to North Carolina, to a suburb of Raleigh. I am excited because it is a promotion and there is so many things to do and see in that state, that I can't wait to start the adventure. I am sad about ditching my sister and Sunshine though. I plan on bribing them to come visit with plane tickets. Yes, I have already looked up yarn shops!

As a result, I will be spending this weekend consolidating all my stuff and getting rid of whatever i don't want or need. I forsee several trips to goodwill in the next month.