ConnectiCon pictures...at last

We finally got the pictures of ConnectiCon off of my love's phone. Sorry for the quality.

When we got there we did a quick spin around to see where everything was and then wandered into the Webcomic Auction that was raising funds for the Comic Book Legal Defense Fund. Being an artist myself, copyright and trademark issues are really important to me. Actually a friend of mine is currently going through some trademark issues.
Anywho...there we are watching the auction and my favorite artist Jennie Breeden of The Devil's Panties, Geebas on Parade and various others (damn this girl is prolific) went up. I looked at love as cute and pitifully as I could and he said go ahead and bid. So I did. Another dude and I got into a bit of a bidding war... my wonderful, generous and fabulous husband let me keep going. I won't say how much I paid but I won! This became my 30th birthday present...remember my birthday back in January that went uncelebrated? Yeah, well this totally made up for it. I had actually come to the Con to meet Jennie. I even emailed her to see what I could bring her. I came armed with fruit, candy and sandwiches.

So the goodies I won were a deck of her playing cards, a Men in Kilts...with a leaf blower calendar (as she states if you wear underwear it's a skirt. These are men in kilts) , signed issues of her comic book and an original signed cthulu geshia drawing done there at the con. Actually we ending up hanging out with her and a bunch of other artist all night. She gave the choice of two out of three geshia drawings. We went to dinner with them and an after party. Jennie did I tell you that you rock? Well you do! I had so much fun and it was a real inspiration being around all these artist doing their thing. Plus it was total bonus being refered to as "the hot goth chick who bought me".


I forgot to get an empty art journal at work to have sketches done by the artist for me...so I had them draw on me instead.

This was done by Hawk from Applegeeks. The pic of him drawing it didn't come out. This is version of Hawk from Applegeeks Lite.

Tim Buckley of Ctl+Alt+Del didn't have a booth there but that didn't stop me from asking for a sketch. I asked for a doodle of Zeke, my favorite sentient X-box.

Jennie did her little devil girl of course.

This is Jamie of In His Likeness. He did the Internet from his comic. I hadn't known of his before this and it now has a place in my regular comics. For some reason I failed to get one from Chrisiti from In the Puddle. Next time...

I did get Choo Choo Bear from Randy Milholland's Something Positive. We commiserated about Emerson students. I also got a paper sketch that will be framed and put in my studio.I spent all my money buying Jennie so I was unable to get the books and shirts I wanted to. Oh and this...I really really wanted to buy this. Even my love gave his approval. hehehe . In case you are wondering my shirt say Talk Nerdy to Me. It was quite a hit. To sum up it was absolutely wonderful...it was like coming home. It was quite inspiring as an artist and fun for the freak in me. Next year I will be there and in costume. I will also pull some extra jobs to make some just-for-the-con-money. I'm actually anxious to hit a few others, but then love may kill me.

A big thank you to all the artist that let us hang out with them.

Back in the open...

I finished the 7th Harry Potter book last night...at 11:59. I acquired it around 3 pm Saturday before a previous engagement. I won't talk about it here, not yet at least. But it is nice to listen to the news again and read the paper, or talk to people. Now I have freed up some knitting time.

In the dark

Here's fair warning: I'm going underground until I read the new Harry Potter. I've come this far without it being ruined for me...So see you in a day or two.

Thursdays

Thursdays are weird days for me. It's my night to close the store, so I usually don't go in until 2pm or sometimes 1pm. That gives me the morning to myself. There are two types of Thursday mornings that I will typically have. The productive one and a non-productive one. The first I get up at a decent hour, later than I normally do, but still early enough to get things done before I have to leave. On these days I can usually get a load of laundry done start to finish, clean the bathroom, and accomplish a number of tasks. The latter is like today. I sleep in late. Get a slow start and really don't have time to do much before I go in. I don't like these Thursdays very much, but when my body demands sleep, sleep it gets.

I'm working 6 days this week. I'm not going to tell the tale of the hellish week that has transpired in that place. It started when I went in last Thursday...and in the course of the week I've nearly walked out no less than 3 times, got close to being fired, been lied to and stabbed in the back, and generally have reached the end with this company. What remaining time I am there is merely to tie up loose ends and set up for my next employment adventure. I have too much talent to be wasting there.

I have several projects on the go right now. Once I get things sorted out I can say more. Lots of my free time has been reading. I've got to get through book 6 before 7 comes out on Saturday. Its sort of a tradition with us. Actually when one of them came out (5, I think) my sweet love went to the bookstore at midnight to get it for me. I had to leave in the am for a job out of town and he made sure I had it with me. He's definitely a keeper. I just want to read it before someone spoils it for me.

When the Sopranos ended NPR had an article about how if you didn't watch it the night it aired you would have to crawl under a rock to avoid spoilers...and then ten minutes later they reported how it ended with NO spoiler warning!!!! (It wasn't a horrible blow though. I don't watch the show. We don't have cable. *gasp*) I don't want that to happen with Harry Potter. I'm not the kind of person who reads ahead to see what happens.

Post-Con

The con was FAB*U*LOUS!!! I bought a webcomic artist...yes, you read that right. I was drawn on by several of my favorite artists. I have pics galore, but they are on love's phone camera, so it may be a day or two before I do a full post about it.

Today is all about cleaning the house and re hydration.

break

We've thankfully had a break in the weather. It was getting so oppressive. And our A/C ended up having a problem that dumped water all over the innards of our furnace. So now its very likely we need a new furnace. If that is true then here are the stats and winners of the appliance game:

Round 1: no one....dryer went
Round 2: me...stove went
If the furnace goes then round three goes to my love. That was his guess. Mine has been the washer and/or the fridge which have been running neck and neck with each other.

Yesterday was my first day off in a week...and without the A/C I was totally useless. I nearly died after I mowed the lawn. I thought I would come in and turn on the air before my shower. The house would be cool enough to let me get some housework done. Then I realized the full extent of the incident the night before. No turning on the air. I had no where cool to go. I wasn't going to go to the mall myself. So I just sat around....melting. I did get some knitting done. I've also decided to forgo the costume this convention. I'm just lacking the time to complete the one I really wanted to do. And I just can't toss together something right now.

A lot of my time lately is going to rereading the Harry Potter books before the new one comes out on the 21st. I was going to start with the fourth one and just read the last three. But then there was a conversation on whether or not Harry is going to die, and someone said that he thought he would until he reread the first one. Damn! So I started from the beginning again. I'm halfway through 4 at the moment.

So that's life at the moment. Lots o crap at work where its just as hot. for some reason its 10 to 15 degrees hotter in my shop than in the rest of the store. Its even worse if I have to turn the drymount machine on (which operate at temperatures between 175 and 215 Fahrenheit). I spend as little time in there as possible.

I will have pictures eventually....just haven't been knitting much. I have spent so much time at work lately.

I apologize for the lack of coherent statements today. Trouble kick starting the brain this morning.

uh oh!

oh crap...Connecticon is only a few days away...and I still don't have a costume yet. hrm.....

I'm still about just working...a lot...I'm in the middle of a 7 day stretch of hell.

instead of sleeping

getting better with a mouse. I'd love to try with a tablet.



Learn how to draw cartoons, comics, and anime at Sketchfu!

My hand at sketchfu

Lisa turned me onto Sketchfu. I thought I would try my hand at it. My mouse drawing definitely needs some work. Enjoy. (click on it to see it larger)




Learn how to draw cartoons, comics, and anime at Sketchfu!

Pondering...

I've been doing a lot of pondering, thinking, worrying, stressing, and dash of self-pity wallowing since the interview. I'm just not so sure where to go with my life at the moment. I just know I really shouldn't stay where I am at the moment, as far a work goes. I'd love to just quit and start free-lancing again. But I know that's when I'll suddenly, despite all the medical issues, get pregnant. And while that would be wonderful, I wouldn't have any health insurance. grrrr....

Ok, moving on to something that doesn't make my jaw clench and my stomach churn.

This sweater is turning out to be quite the little project of disasters I've created for myself. The "coordinating" yarn I bought looked hideous with the two existing colors. Just awful, so I'm back to making what I have work. There not enough to do a matching hat. I was making it work until I was two feet short on the color for the button band bind off. So I am stealing it from another part of the sweater. This really is a situation of robbing Peter to pay Paul. I'm determined to make this work. Come hell or high water....this will work.

Other then that I'm doing a touch of cooking this morning before I go into work. Today is our (delayed due to holiday) garbage day. Which is perfect broth making day. I save all (or most) of my vegetable peelings for broth. Carrot peelings, onion skins and the outer layers, broccoli stalks, the little ends of the garlic that get cut off, celery ends. Just about anything that is technically edible but not exactly desirable to do so. I scrub them well before peeling and put them in a freezer bag. When it is full I boil them for broth and toss the peelings. When I finally get a compost pile, they will go there. The broth either is made into soup right away or frozen for later use. Ice cube trays are great for this. Freeze it as cubes and then defrost only what you need for a recipe. I do need new ice cube trays for this. Use different trays then ones for you 'regular' ice, unless you want a brothy taste to your soda. I also boil any chicken/turkey carcasses for broth. After the meal I pick the meat off, but leave a little on for flavor and boil away. Again, its used right away and/or frozen. I love soup. I eat it all the time and making my own broth makes it much easier and much more economical to make.

I'm back

Well, I'm back from the interview. It went very well, though I now know this position won't be the magic cure for my current situation that I have been hoping for. We shall see what happens though.

Feeling a bit calmer after it was over I noticed that I wasn't too far from Creative Fibers. I felt that I had earned a little treat so in I went. I grabbed two skeins of Debbie Bliss Cashmerino to finish the baby set and a skein of black Silky Wool to get going on another project. For the baby thing I knew I wasn't going to find the same color. They had something *close* but I think it would have looked like a mistake, so I went with a totally different color to compliment the other two. I'm hoping to get that done tonight. I'm on my own most of today...I think I'm going pop in some Dark Shadows and knit my little heart out...and think...lots of thinking.

just testing

Just trying something out as a new profile pic. I took this in college with a timer. Yes, that's me. Yes, that's my violin. This is probably my all time favorite photo of myself.

And the days not over yet!

It has been a day of happenings...Very productive at work and I figured out a computer thing that had been stumping us for a while. I was out at 3ish since I went in at 7. Ran to Target and actually found what I was looking for. Out in the parking lot I got a call from the Doctor. I guess we're off to more in/fertility appointments. Then I get home to a message I assumed was the doctor...nope. I have an interview tomorrow!!!!! Now I know what I'm doing tonight...getting the portfolio together and try to figure out what I'm gonna wear. ahhhhhhhhhh!!!!!!

I guess this would be a good time to announce my other blog venture:

Footprints in the Sky

This is going to be my scenic art blog. Its in it's basic form at the moment but that will change. So much to do...so much to do...eating would help wouldn't it. hrm...Well I'm off to see if I can knit and photo-shop at the same time.

Hot

its hot...so very hot. Normally this isn't a problem since we have central air. But the furnace is currently unhooked due to love's household construction. So we languish away. Not really good knitting weather. I've hit another roadblock on the baby project. I'm not sure if I'll have to break down and buy more yarn or not. I have a possible creative solution but then again it may fail miserably. I'll know when I actually pick up the needles to knit it. I just feel too grimy to do so. I'm saving my shower until just before work...

I did finish the other front to Otis. I'm becoming very bored with it...or knitting in general lately. I think its the heat...I have sewing urges but between a cat infested studio and power being shut off hither and thither in the house, it's not exactly easy to accomplish.

I'm antsy today as well. It's hard to work on things when love's doing projects of this scale, especially when he keeps hitting roadblocks. Today's Mantra: Never let a paranoid schizophrenic contractor design or build anything in your house. Unfortunately in our case he owned the house at the time and we are left to deal with his complete lack of planning, logic, or adherence to code.

Well I'm off to read for a while before heading off to work for the day/evening.

Cats on a Tuesday

We have many cat friendly perches in our home. Various places that one can laze about. Each cat has their own favorite. And then there is the Sunpatch. The Sunpatch exists during the middle of the day when the only bit of direct sunlight in the house comes from the skylight in the hall. The size varies as the sun makes its crawl through the sky but it averages about 1 foot by 2 feet. This is prime kitty real estate and a nearly daily battle will ensue for possession. I managed to document one such battle. I'm sorry for the quality of them...between the fierce fighting and the bright sun it was the best I could do.



This fight began when Isis walked up to the Sunpatch and looked at it. Loki came running down the stairs and sat right in it. Loki doesn't share well. If Isis is already in the Sunpatch Loki will approach and merely sit on her head. Don't believe for a moment that Isis is the victim here. She will often walk up to a reclining Loki, lick her head a few times and then CHOMP on an ear or a haunch.


The battles are somewhat evenly matched. Isis has no claws but is quite adept with her teeth, having practiced for years on us before we got Loki. Loki has claws but forgets to use them. Isis has several pounds on Loki, but then Loki has learned the trick of rolling on her back and using the floor and wall as leverage. Her favorite pose is the paw in the face. Isis will be sizing up the next attack and a grey paw will just smack on her nose and sit there. Her version of 'talk to the hand' I suppose.



Loki is the victor this time...mainly because Isis got bored, walked away, and demanded food from the audience in the kitchen. Doesn't she look proud.

Ha!

So just got back from love's company picnic. I usually avoid this since it's an odd thing being there...I used to work for the company and then I hit a glass ceiling during a campaign against me for fighting for safety issues. It seems its against company policy to NOT want to work in a carbon monoxide rich environment...but anywho. A new to the company employee is someone who went to college with the two of us. Someone who doesn't like me...or so I assume since she was talking smack about me to a rather good friend of mine. Actually the story is quite amusing considering she really put her foot in it on that occasion. So there she is...and there I am. She looked right at me and then ignored me. I grabbed my beer and kept on walking, sidled up to love and said what happened and plainly pointed out the fact that I still have the same figure I had in college and well...other people don't. Otherwise I totally behaved myself. Hey at least I didn't call her on the carpet for calling me a bitch in front of a bunch of my friends.

hrmph....

Sure everyone says something about the scissors but no one comments on the Eurydice set. *pout* As for the sheer number (get it.."shear"...well love would be proud of me) of scissors, mind you it is the merging of both our collections as well as tons of donations from people giving me their sewing equipment. I won't mention how many sewing machines (working and non) that are in my house.

I have been a busy little bee of late. Friday nite we threw a BBQ so of course it rained and had to move the festivities indoors. So that canceled the croquet match and the s'mores toasted at the fire pit, but it was fun anyway.

I finished the shawl for love's grandmother. I laid it out to show him when I bound of and then noticed something. Same dye lot but you can distinctly see the different skeins...son of a motherless goat!
I'm also working on a baby sweater for a friend. I have 3 skeins of yarn for it and a hat. I have two in the darker and one in the lighter. The hat was knit in the darker a while ago and I started knitting the sweater with the lighter main body with darker details....not enough yarn for that. So I frogged it all (i had done the back and the two fronts) and the hat and restarted with darker main body and lighter details. I'll do the hat a mix of the two. It's in Debbie Bliss Cashmerino. Love the stuff...oh why don't I get more yarn??? I nabbed this stuff when It was discontinued. At least I'm working on my destashing.

I also had a late surprise gift from my old PRGE pal Obsidian Kitten! There is a beautiful tulip shaped bowl for candles...lets see the little bastard squirrels chop that off! A Batman button, some pretty pretty soap and a hand knit pot holder. The postcard has a picture of Charlie Chaplin from Modern Times. Not seen is the Fear Factor red fire ants gummies. Those didn't last long. Thank you again! It came at the perfect time as all your packages did.

Ok off to get my hairs cut by a professional, buy a pin drill and to the doctor's for some paperwork. Then to love's company picnic where I will try to behave myself. well...maybe.

Righting some wrongs

For those who bemoan the fact that I forgot my camera while painting Euyrdice in NYC here's a little movie with pictures of the set to narration from the designer. (who happens to be one of my favorite designers). None of the workers pictured are me. Sorry. Wasn't much time for picture taking.

And a correction...it seems that I DON'T own 17 pairs of scissors...I own 22. That's all I came across actually. I didn't dig too deep in our tool area or in some of the more obscure craft storage areas.

Don't worry....

I didn't cut my hair off. I'm just aggravated with it. My mum wouldn't cut it as short as I wanted back in April and now it is too long again. My hair grows wicked fast and I haven't found a good hairdresser that is affordable. That's why I just let it grow...it costs way too much to maintain a cut. But when it is getting this long it's quite heavy.

So I didn't chop it...I gorged my self on take out from Outback and laughed at Shaun of the Dead.

I have four more days of work before a day off...four more days.

hide n seek

I think love better hide the scissors....all 17 pairs of them...slightly (and getting more) drunk and sick of my hair...hehehe.

Cursed

Apparently I'm phucking cursed to be a god-damn pariah at any job I have because I follow policy and fight for a safe workplace.

Can you tell that i'm drinking already. I've had it. I'm on a 10 day stretch with out a day off and I have a feeling that I will be tendering my notice at the end of it. I'm sick of doing everything that I am asked to do and being the bad guy for doing it.

But on a good note I'm due for a good boss in the cycle...

Boss L-great boss taught me a lot
Boss J-horrible
Boss L-Best boss I ever had! Miss her like crazy (yes Lisa that's you)
Boss K-absolute nutcase had to talk her out of suicide most days and ended up totally stabbing me in the back
Boss T-tough but fair. totally took a chance on me. really made me feel appreciated after boss K. I cried when he left.
Boss L-awful, childish, thinks he's the best thing since sliced bread but can't find his way out of a paper bag...I could easily go on.
Boss ???-see the next one should be good...where are they though???

In the Darkness

I am in one of my darker moods right now. Not a pit of despair, mind you. This is not depression. This is....well what has gotten me labeled goth through the years.

Dark, reclusive...I'd lock myself in my studio with my music and work all night if it weren't full of cats. I have an urge to either have an altered state of consciousness or cut myself right now. One of my secret thrills/secret addictions is self mutilation. I've not succumbed to it in years, but the need and desire is often there. Ever present...like my eating disorders. It's very hard to explain to those who don't do it...Reviving Ophelia has a good chapter on it, beyond being a fabulous book as a whole. I think every adolescent girl should read it...and any woman who never had the chance to. Secretary is a movie that addresses it in a very forward manner. Actually when my Love and I watched this movie together I turned to him at one point and said "that's what it feels like, that's why I do it" It's a shame that too many people focus on the bondage aspect of the movie. Am I revealing too much of myself...oh well. Like I've said...I've not cut in years. Mostly for the sake of my love.

Where was I going with all this. I just have an urge to walk away from work and all of this and just drown myself in music and art. Back like I use to before this horrible suburban rut I'm in. Perhaps it's the weather, or the time of year, or having gone off to New York to paint, or the moon and planets or whatever. I need to pull back from all this and find my spirit again. Find my art again. something...

sorry if this post wasn't what you expected...perhaps I'm starting to be myself again.

Wednesday

We I'm a bad girl and didn't take pictures yesterday on my day off when it was sunny. It doesn't help that the camera is full. Stupid thing won't recognize the memory card at all so we have to rely on the internal memory...which is anywhere from 9 to 12 pictures. Bah!

Font wars update
Larger: 2 votes
Smaller: 2 votes (and one if I had to vote vote)
Don't care: 2 votes

So I'll keep thinking about it for a while. I wish I could get the size to something in between. I've tried doing so on my template but it just won't budge. hrm...

Today I am working at my old store getting my assistant settled in and clearing out the shop of all 'illegal' stuff. It will be rather interesting to be back. I miss some people like crazy...the others... meh. I will try very hard to not be snarky. Well I better drag the boy out of bed before I leave.

Today's Mantra is from the Tao Te Ching:
Do your work, then step back.
The only path to serenity.

Font wars

Ok...i'm going to take a little poll here....

I'm not sure what works best for you who read this

Do you like reading my blog in

This font size (larger)

or this font size (normal)

The most votes win.

getting there

I just realized that I haven't posted in a few days and I left it rather tenuous. I'm doing better. SnB was good...the mooing of the ice cream cow at Stew's was a little much, but I think the place is a winner for now. I worked on the shawl for my love's grandmother until I ran out of yarn...i didn't have the extra. So I went to start on Otis...had the extra yarn but not the piece I was knitting on. So I grabbed the Silky Wool I had in there and started on my Knucks.

Work has been hell on wheels. My assistant is being promoted and moved out to another store. I wouldn't have made it through the holidays or my Dad's surgery with out her there. They are swapping her with someone else, unfortunately some one who has extenuating circumstances in her family which means I cannot rely on her being there. And my new guy quit an hour before his shift yesterday. The day I throw my keys at my boss and walk out the door gets closer and closer everyday. *think pretty thoughts....happiness is a warm gun....think pretty thoughts*

I will have pics of the knitting when the sun decides to come out.

In the light of day

I'm doing a tad better this morning. At least I've learned to recognize when I'm having a bout of depression. It's a start. Today will be a struggle. Work is going to be less than pleasent especially since the other two managers there today are ones that I cannot stand. Patience is a virtue but as we all know I'm not exactly known for being virtuious. Well I must be off. At least I have SnB to look forward to tonight. This time we're trying out the dining room at Stew Leonard's. We all know how I feel about Stew so that's something good today.

Today's Mantra: If you kill them then you are just making more paperwork for yourself.

falling

I am currently sinking into another pit of despair. Work has me overwhelmed and frustrated. Even when I'm home I can't get away from it. I'm stuck where I am and I don't know how to get out of it. I feel creatively and emotionally sucked dry. My fuse is getting shorter and my filters are wearing away.

Addicted to quizzes?

In the dark ages, how would gothknits die?

You would be burned as a heretic. At least you would go out in a blaze of glory ... or just a blaze. It all depends on how you spin it.

'How would you die in the dark ages?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

Again, not surprising

MISSING: gothknits

Was last seen walking around naked in the woods

'What will you last be seen doing?' at QuizGalaxy.com

'What will your obituary say?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Take this quiz at QuizGalaxy.com

Its all fun and games until...

My contact ripped in my eye this morning. Never had that happen before. Damn it really hurts and it's rather hard to set an ad with one blurry and one non-blurry eye. Still hurts. Don't know why I'm posting this. Off to bed.

still here

It has been a crazy day. I stayed up too late last night yelling at the TV (read: watching hockey). We really need a bigger one. Ours is just too small to really see what is going on. At least they stopped doing the little colored blur to track the puck. I really hated that. I can't watch hockey and pay attention to my knitting so I worked on the green/yellow miter square blanket instead of Otis. That's the only knitting I've done since SnB on Wednesday. I've either been working or I crash when I get home. We did go out for our anniversary, at least. Well that's it. I'm exhausted, hungry and I still have a huge list of people that I need to call. Plus I have BE at work at 7am tomorrow. blah

mmmm...chocolate

You are Dark Chocolate

You live your life with intensity, always going full force. You push yourself (and others) to the limit... you want more than you can handle. An extreme person, you challenge and inspire the world!

What Kind of Chocolate Are You?

5 years ago...

I made the best decision of my life and married my best friend and the love of my life.

Happy Anniversary.

Beyond definition

Gothknits -- [noun]: A poltergeist sent back in time to change the course of history forever 'How will you be defined in the dictionary?' at QuizGalaxy.com

Home again

ah home sweet home...

yet I could have spent another week in NYC...at least. And you will all hate me because I'm the idiot who left her camera here at home.

oh well...of to bed. We must have walked about 4 or 5 miles today. But i did get to see my dead bodies.

procrastination

Your Score: Katharine Hepburn

You scored 19% grit, 23% wit, 57% flair, and 11% class!

You are the fabulously quirky and independent woman of character. You go your own way, follow your own drummer, take your own lead. You stand head and shoulders next to your partner, but you are perfectly willing and able to stand alone. Others might be more classically beautiful or conventionally woman-like, but you possess a more fundamental common sense and off-kilter charm, making interesting men fall at your feet. You can pick them up or leave them there as you see fit. You share the screen with the likes of Spencer Tracy and Cary Grant, thinking men who like strong women.

Find out what kind of classic leading man you'd make by taking the
Classic Leading Man Test.

Link: The Classic Dames Test written by gidgetgoes on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Yes eventually I'll go pack and go to bed.

I <3 Stew

I am totally in love with Stew Leonard's now. I got out of work 2 hours early and therefore we had no dinner planned since I wasn't suppose to be home anyway. So we though we would check out the new Stew Leonard's down the road. I'm at a loss for words...Sexy produce, cheese selection for miles, animatronics, hot and cold food bar and beautiful fresh herbs. So dinner was a loaf of bread, herbed goat cheese, fresh cherries and soup off the soup bar. Oh and we had soft serve first. I'm completely smitten.

In other news...my favorite restaurant is closed on Mondays so that is out. Don't know where we are going to eat now. I'm debating what knitting to take on the train. hrm...

be back in a few days.

Happy Memorial Day!

I'm actually working tomorrow. Good work though. I'll be touching up Eurydice at Second Stage in NYC. The boy is coming down with me and we're getting a hotel for the night. We're hoping to pop into our favorite restaurant for dinner.
Bodies is also exhibiting at South Street Seaport. I have been dying to see this. I first encountered it on an episode of The Regency House Party. (I never did see the last episode so don't spoil it for me) I've always wanted to dissect a human. I know it sounds grotesque, but its more of a curiosity thing. I find the human body a fascinating machine and I'd love to investigate hands on.
This trip is in lieu of our anniversary trip. Friday is our 5 year wedding anniversary. The original plans had us in Europe this week. But between emergency trips for family members in hospital and work denying love's vacation, this will be it. We're both working on Friday now, too. Yeah it sucks. First my birthday party was canceled and now this. I guess I don't get to celebrate the milestones this year. I hope to get some knitting done on the train in though. I really wish the train ran all the way up here. Instead we have to drive to New Haven first.

Um..ok

I nearly fell out of my chair and peed myself when I saw this commercial.


Yep, that's Bruce Campbell.

I need a day

If I weren't going to be the only manager in the store after 3:30 I would take a sick day today. And that's really odd for me because I tend to be morally opposed to calling out because of ones period. But then again I'm having a killer period. I'm a ball of pain and non-stop nausea. I only eat when I get woozy or the hunger overrides the sickness. I pity the minions today for I am not in the mood for 10,000 stupid questions.

My car is currently in the shop getting its muffler strapped back on. Which means I cannot go out and get my comic books before work as I had hoped. Crappy yucky day. Even though it is beautiful out and suppose to be in the 80's.

I finished the right front of Otis and ripped out the left. I think I have a handle on the gauge. It took a ball for one front. It should be the same for the other side and I figure a ball and half to two for the back. That will leave only one to one and a half for the sleeves. That's when things will get creative.

Well I better eat and go get my car.

What the !?!!?

Just saw Spiderman 3. Holy emo boy, Batman!

Applegeeks put it best.

In other news:
For info on the pads try here.

and an earlier post about them here.

off to bed now or I lose my spot to the cats.

Heroes, Princess Leia and Sundresses

I'm quasi back to days, but not really. I think I'll have to take a sleeping pill tonight to help. I have to go back to work tomorrow morning. I'd rather light myself on fire...but anywho.

Last night was the season finale of Heroes, and I feel the need to state my opinion here. So if you haven't seen it, SPOILERS AHEAD!
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I must admit I was rather disappointed with the finale. I liked Nathan's anti-hero redemption. I understand the story arc of Peter's sacrifice but I really like the character and don't want to see him go. I also grasp the irony that he would never have become the bomb if he never sought to stop it (therefore running into Ted and absorbing said power). It really irritated the hell out of me that they merely stabbed Sylar and left him lying there. Cut his frickin' head off!!!! How many times did you almost have him!?!?!? You know how to stop the powers by severing the brain. Decapitate the bastard already!!!! Sheesh! Yet I do agree that it looks as if he were dragged off by another as opposed to crawling away. Loved the cockroach as a comparison, too. And for the idiots on the message boards...Peter couldn't just fly away because he was using all of his concentration/energy/focus on not blowing up in the middle of NYC. And he could not regenerate if Claire shot him because the whole point of shooting him in the head was to destroy his brain therefore stopping his abilities.
I do like the concept for next season: new story and a mini-spin off during the hiatus where you are introduced to new heroes and get to vote on who joins the story line. Plus the hint of a new super-villain. I would like to see what the eclipse has to do with all of this. I hope they don't go the way of Lost and cast about too many unanswered mysteries and never really give us any resolutions.

Ok enough of that rant.

I finished my Princess Leia pads. I got 16 out of 1 yard of flannel. That is with no inserts cut from this fabric since I have enough from my other patterns. Most days I don't use the inserts. Who else can brag of Star Wars menstrual gear? I forgot who asked me but they stay in place because there are snaps on the wings. You can see it if you click to see the bigger picture.

And sundresses. There's a ton of them out in stores now...do you think I could find one to fit me. HA! Stupid fashion industry. I guess I'm going to have to make my own. I'm most likely going to use this pattern from Folkwear. I really like this one because it reminds me of a costume I once wore in college. I think it was made from this pattern. I adored it and still wish it had left school with me. I went through my fabric stash and didn't really find anything I could use. I did find some other things that piqued my interest...so many hobbies so little time. (stupid job) So now I'm on the hunt for a quirky fabric to make my sundress before the snow flies again. Why the sudden urge for a sundress?? Mostly because my love commented on how he's never seen me in one. I'm willing to indulge his desire on this one.

Another list, but knitting related

Swiped this from Roxtarchicknits.
You know the drill.
Mark with bold the things you have knit (or are knitting)/crocheting, with italics the ones you plan to do sometime, and leave the rest. (I colored mine to make it easier to read)

Afghan
I-cord
Garter stitch
Knitting with metal wire
Shawl
Stockinette stitch
Socks: top-down
Socks: toe-up
Mittens: Cuff-up
Mittens: Tip-down
Hat
Knitting with silk (i'm a self professed silk whore)
Moebius band knitting
Participating in a KAL
Sweater
Drop stitch patterns
Knitting with recycled/secondhand yarn
Slip stitch patterns
Knitting with banana fiber yarn
Domino knitting (=modular knitting)
Twisted stitch patterns
Knitting with bamboo yarn
Two end knitting
Charity knitting
Knitting with soy yarn
Cardigan
Toy/doll clothing
Knitting with circular needles
Baby items
Knitting with your own handspun yarn
Slippers
Graffiti knitting
Continental knitting
Designing knitted garments
Cable stitch patterns (incl. Aran)
Lace patterns
Publishing a knitting book
Scarf
Teaching a child to knit
American/English knitting
Knitting to make money
Buttonholes
Knitting with alpaca
Fair Isle knitting
Norwegian knitting
Dying with plant colors
Knitting items for a wedding (anyone who reads this blog knows all about that)
Household items (dishcloths, washcloths, tea cosies…)
Knitting socks (or other small tubular items) on one or two circulars
Knitting with someone else’s handspun yarn
Knitting with dpns
Holiday related knitting
Teaching a male how to knit
Bobbles
Knitting for a living
Knitting with cotton
Knitting smocking
Dying yarn
Steeks
Knitting art
Knitting two socks on two circulars simultaneously
Fulling/felting
Knitting with wool
Textured knitting
Kitchener stitch (still don't quite have the hang of it)
Purses/bags
Knitting with beads
Swatching (not nearly as much as I should)
Long Tail CO
Entrelac
Knitting and purling backwards
Machine knitting
Knitting with self patterning/self striping/variegated yarn
Stuffed toys
Knitting with cashmere
Darning
Jewelry
Knitting with synthetic yarn
Writing a pattern
Gloves
Intarsia
Knitting with linen
Knitting for preemies
Tubular CO
Freeform knitting
Short rows
Cuffs/fingerless mits/armwarmers
Pillows
Knitting a pattern from an online knitting magazine
Rug
Knitting on a loom
Thrummed knitting
Knitting a gift
Knitting for pets
Shrug/bolero/poncho
Knitting with dog/cat hair **(not intentionally, but as cat induced add on)
Hair accessories
Knitting in public

Hrm...I've either done it or I want to do it (for the most part). I guess I better get cracking then, huh?

Reanimated

of sorts.

Overnights are over. I spent most of yesterday sleeping. I didn't fall into bed until just before noon. Love woke me around 5 ish. I had dinner and then passed out on the couch for a while. Then in bed by midnight and not up again until 10am. I should be able to make it through today. It seems I wasn't needed for touch-ups in NYC, so I can take it easy today.

I got a touch of knitting done. I'm working on the second front for Otis. I think I have to reknit the other side. I'm finding my tension a little wonky with this yarn. I really need to pay attention and pull each stitch to get it even.

I'm currently torturing my love with the ABBA CD that his sister got him for his birthday (a gag gift of sorts). I figure it was good motivation to get him showered and on our way to the comic book store.

Tagged

No fair tagging a zombie, but I'll play along. I was tagged by Kat.

Each person tagged gives 7 random facts about themselves. Those tagged need to write in their blogs 7 facts, as well as the rules of the game. You need to tag seven others and list their names on your blog. You have to leave those you plan on tagging a note in their comments so they know that they have been tagged and to read your blog. Here are my facts:
(this is tougher than I thought since I did something like this before...oh and my brain is total mush)

1. If its on the menu, I will always order the tiramisu.
   
2. I don't like competitive environments, mostly because I can become extremely
   competitive to the point of psychosis. Ask anyone who has played air hockey with me.
3. I can actually say with all honesty that I walked to and from school in a blizzard with snow up to my thighs uphill both ways.
   
4. I share my birthday with Elvis, David Bowie, Boris Vallejo and Stephen Hawking. And despite what most may think being born on his birthday in the year he died does NOT make me a huge Elvis fan. I do however adore the other three.
   
5. I own 6 tiaras and I do wear them. I wear one all day on my birthday no matter what I am doing. I use to wear one on my night shifts before I became manager. And I'll wear one whenever I feel the urge.
   
6. I once turned down an invitation to dance at a club because of a hockey game. No one ever asks me to dance. There I was at the bar with about a dozen guys (all my friends on the floor dancing) all swarming around the tv. My response to random guy asking to dance was "Can't dance, Watching hockey." In my defense it was the last game of the Stanley cup.
   
7. I think peas should be outlawed as a food product.
   

I can't really tag anyone because most of you have. If you read this and haven't been tagged yet...Tag, your IT!

Actual Knitting!

I'm currently in what I like to refer to as "zombie mode". I made it through the first overnight of work. I feel as though a Mack truck hit me,*backed up, drove forward*, and left me for dead. (Repeat between the * umpteen times) It's kinda like being hung over with out the joy of being drunk.

I did do some knitting on my preparation nights. I'm working on Otis in Rowan Summer Tweed's Brilliant. (My photos are more accurate color than the link.) I have several skeins that I picked up in Karen's stash sale. I attempted to take some pictures for you...Isis decided to help.


Notice the different pose in this one. That's because I picked her up and situated her on the cat bed. Yet she returned, determined to deposit cat hair on what until now had been cat hair free.
Not to totally curse myself but this seems to be going well. I did fudge a bit of math at one point but so far it seems to be working at gauge and measurements are accurate. Yeah, I know...I just cursed myself. I don't have as much yarn as it calls for though. I'll just do shorter sleeves or totally different sleeves all together.


With all these pictures of Isis, one might be wondering where Loki is. This is where she usually can be found.

Searching

I am on a quest for a print (or even better the actual magazine) of French Vogue with Frida Kahlo on the cover. Just to put it out there if anyone happens on it.

And I only made it until 5am last night. Tonight starts the actual work.

Shift it

I'm having to switch my body clock for this work week. I'm working 10pm until 8am to change my entire department. What really sucks is that my love is working 8am until 10pm so we won't see each other until Friday. Actually Monday night work starts at 10:15. Heroes ends at ten and it'll take about 10 to 15 to get to the store. Hey, I have my priorities in place.

To get my body ready I've been forcing myself to stay up and sleeping late. Last night I finished Exile around 4am and then went to bed. I got up at 2 o'clock today (mainly due to Isis snoring like a chainsaw). I'd like to make it until 6am tonight. I've a few projects lined up to keep me occupied. I did go through my stash and weed out stuff that I really won't use to add to Kris's donation pile. The yarn is going to our local ARC chapter. Personally I couldn't think of a better place it should go. We had some members from another chapter working for us at my old store. I'll tell you they were the best employees we had. And I miss them like crazy. It was never a bad day with them around.

Aaah!!...gotta run...it's Sunday and everything closes early and I've only been up 2 hours!

And for her next trick

Yes my cat can climb step ladders...even when they are folded up for storage.



She learned this trick in response to my husband's singing. It seems when he sings he hits the resonance for her skull or something because it just doesn't sit well with her. First she meows complaints and cease and desist requests with each request increasing in intensity. If he ignores that, then she attacks.

When we bought the house there were no stairs to the unfinished second floor. He was up there looking down the ladder at her. I suggested he sing to see her response. He busted into a rendition of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" and once he hit that high note she had had enough.She approached said ladder and started climbing quite determined that the singing would stop when she reached the top. (That's my little evil genius.) After the wall thwacking incident we decided it was best if the ladder lived in the garage while not in use.

Non-stop action...

That is what my life is right now...or is it non-stop farce? hrm. I am back from painting and oh the stories I could tell...but not right now. Somewhat to protect the parties involved and somewhat because I have to run off to my "real" job where more drama is unfolding. Can anyone say cluster-phuck?

But what I really wanted to show you are the lovely tulips that I came home to Monday night. Love bought me these to replace the ones the squirrels assassinated. Isn't he wonderful. Well I must be off and go look managerial or something. Saturday will be my first real day off in two weeks. Is it Saturday yet??

PS the mark on the wall above the tulips is where Isis knocked over a 6 foot step ladder while trying to climb it and it smacked into said wall.

An Unwelcome Anniversary

Today marks three years at my "temporary" retail job. I've climbed (or rather was dragged kicking and screaming bloody oaths) from part time cashier to department manager (with pressure to go higher)...

and what have I learned from all this...I really hate the general population.

And how will I celebrate?...by driving 2 hours on my days off to go do something I love.

I'll be off painting the next few days. Behave while I'm gone. (and kill as many squirrels as you can!)

Welcome to the World!

Welcome to the world Miss Emma Kaye
p.s. you have some kick ass parents

Kill all the squirrels

(except for Foamy)

goddamnphuckingsquirrels!!!!! This is what I discovered this morning...Headless Tulips! My beautiful tulips were hacked off again(!) by the damn squirrels. The Queen of the Night ones I've had for 3 years and have never seen them bloom. Squirrels must die. Squirrels must die. Squirrels. Must. Die. *sigh* I guess I'm forced to live vicariously through Yarnstorm.

Here's a few pictures of things that the hawk fodder allows to let bloom

Thursday,Thursday

Its Thursday, one of my least favorite days. Its the night I close the store. But today I'm rather happy.

I'm sore as hell, a tad tired but happy. I just spent the last two days off in NY painting again. I had such a blast with Lisa. Unfortunately I don't have time to go on and on. Errands await.

I'm anxious to start some new projects. I need to pull out the yarn...i just realized I never did the flash your stash photos this year. Hrm...maybe a belated one will appear.

I must be off..here's a random pic just for fun.(I must admit, I'm tempted to dye my hair that color.)

WHY?!?!?!?!?

Why do so many stupid people have internet connections?!?!?!!?!?!?

I need to stop reading the imdb message boards.

*smile*

Back from today's bout of working in NY. I'm so happy to be working with Lisa again. I braved the Tappan Zee and survived.

And I realized that this is what I am meant to be doing.

And this is what my toes look like when I've been using my stocking feet to erase on my charcoal drawing all day. :) (Love made me wash my feet before coming to bed)

Things in Motion

So, it has been an eventful set of days lately. Tuesday I was subjected to an all day meeting further down the state for work. I was a little late getting there because they decided they would turn off every other set of traffic lights on the main road and teach the police cadets to direct traffic. Not fun. The meeting was rather informative on somethings, repetitive on others, and utterly infuriating on the basics. Such as, how the hell can I train my staff when I only have about 7 hours of overlap time a week when you take out the time I have to sit in meetings and/or run the store? More training on less payroll.
*breathe*
Wednesday I awoke to the joy of another UTI. When I finally got through to the doctor's office, the nice lady on the phone asked if I wanted to come in that day or the next?!?!?! I'm sorry but when I'm peeing razor blades, sooner is better. Yesterday is better. But now I'm doing better on my antibiotics and the magic red pills, though pumping my body this full of liquids always makes me a little blah. The doctor's visit did yield some good things however. We've been playing telephone tag with them about the rest of our in/fertility testing. Now we have those answers. There will be more tests next month, but at least we have some idea of what is going on. Wednesday night is also when my MIL arrived for a visit. Don't cringe...I actually adore my MIL.
Thursday I still had to close the store...that's more work stuff that we just won't bring up. Let's just say despite the UTI and being on antibiotics I still came home and had a gin and tonic.
Friday was the bearer of news I can't quite talk about yet. We also took a trip to Mystic Aquarium (hence the mermaid avatar.) The weather was a tad yucky but it was fun. I touched a starfish and several types of crabs in a little hands on area. Kodiak is HUGE! And then it was time for MIL to head home. I crashed for most of the evening.
Today was Connecticut Sheep and Wool. I was a very good girl. All I spent was the parking fee. Nothing really jumped out at me and screamed 'You must buy me!' so I didn't. The only thing I really considered was a needle felting dragon kit, but it was a little out of my intended price range. I did, however, sit a bit at a spinning wheel. I have a drop spindle that I love and a wheel is a far off hope. I haven't spun in a while...actually my spindle is full and I don't quite know what to do next. I did like the wheel I tried today. I was quite horrible at it, but it felt good. Much better than the single treadle that I tried before. Its another hobby on the horizon. Karen got a picture of me at it...I'll post it when she sends it to me. She skillfully enabled blogless Rachel into her first wheel.

Tomorrow (and various days over the next three weeks) I will be off painting with my old boss Lisa, who happens to be my favorite boss ever! I'm so excited. Its off in a little town in New York just north of NYC. I'll have some fun pics from that. And its for one of my favorite designers. I'm actually taking this who thing as a good omen for something else.

Oh and I stopped and picked up my comics today. Rachel, I didn't see Powers but I'll check next time. I had met my shopping quota on this trip anyway.

Well, my love is done cutting up pipes so I think I'm safe to move about the house now. He's replacing the pipe made of duct tape to one made of pvc. silly boy.

Healthy...of sorts

Sorry for the long absence but after being hit with the plague I did nothing but work and sleep for a while. Its only in the last few days that I've felt rather human. I still can't seem to shake this cough though. I will however extol the virtues of Mucinex. That stuff actually works and is worth the $15 for 20 pills.

I didn't do a whole lot of knitting in my illness. I knit some on the random baby blanket that I started on our trip to Florida. It doesn't require much attention and its done on bamboo needles. I did finish the ribwarmer (minus the trim on body and one arm hole) and the damn thing is too small for me. But I couldn't rip it out because I took real care with the seaming and it looks too good to rip apart. I'll either give it to someone's kid or a friend of mine who is incredibly waif-ish. (yes Emily, I mean you) I do like the pattern...I have some other yarn that should do well for one of these. So much for the selfish knitting, huh. I will have pic soon. It needs to be modeled to show it...otherwise it just looks like a cabled blob with holes.

The visit with my Mum and little bro (he's 14) went well despite the plague. I'm back into buying comics because of the little punk. Actually I never really had to buy too many comics...most of the guys I dated were comic geeks and I just read all theirs. My husband is probably the first who doesn't collect comics and we've been together for nearly 10 years (together, not married). That's a long time without comics. So now I'm hooked again. I've found 3 shops in the area. I've also started playing Exile again. I wanted to go through all the Myst games in order before I play the latest two. I also realize that I need to buckle down and learn this html stuff for real. I guess I'm getting my geek on these days. So that's where I'm at.

poetry moment

Rain, Rain, Go Away
Flood My Basement Some Other Day
Preferably After I Move Away

What you are seeing is a new source of water in our basement. It is now seeping up through all the cracks in the floor of my studio. First a cat infestation and now flooding.

It never fails

My mum and my little brother are here for a short visit....so of course that means I am sick. I've got some sort of cold thing going on. Congestion, lots of coughing and now achy is starting to settle in. This has altered some of our plans, that and the fact that work is holding my love hostage. (the bastards)

I did finish knitting the ribwarmer...now I just need to block it and figure out how to sew it together. Then there is a quick edging.

For some reason my Yahoo avatar is not updating though I keep changing her appearance. Anyone else having this issue? She changes everywhere else but on my page here. hrm?

Happy Easter!

Good morning and happy Easter...here's a few holiday links for your enjoyment!

Peep Research - scientific study of "those resilient little birds". Absolutely hysterical...from there you can link to many other peep related sites. This one is probably the best out there...it almost makes me wish I worked in an office.

If you are really up for a holiday challenge try making some Pysanky. I always loved these as a kid. We never made them but some people in the family had them and they were NOT FOR TOUCHING. Most years my friends Lisa and Robb have a pysansky party but sadly I was never able to attend (and now they live far far away...someday I'll be there)
For instructions, history, supplies and tips you can try here, here, here, or here.

Sadness

Love's Grandfather passed away on Thursday.
He was a lovely man and shall be missed.

So now what...

Now that my month of finishing projects (no I didn't get everything done...just the major ones) is over it's time for some selfish knitting. I've been having trouble on where to start and then yesterday I just picked up my needles. This is a ribwarmer from Vogue knitting fall 2006. Just a little something to get me started. It is a very easy cable pattern that doesn't require intense attention.

I'm using Cascade 220 and actually getting gauge. Its an odd pattern, knit all in one piece. I'm still not clear on the mechanics of how it goes together but that should clear itself up once I get further along (I hope). I know the color doesn't show off the cables very well but its something that I have enough of in stash that knits to gauge. What you see above is from one night of knitting. I'm rather excited...I hope it fits.

Below is the beginnings of my tulips...I hope they make it this year...it's a battle between me and the damn squirrels who decapitate my flowers just for fun. If you look close you can see some of the little onions that grow all over my yard. The bit of blue is the hatchway doors to our basement. The front door is the same color.

Finally

Yes I am finally posting the pictures of the shawl. Here are the specs:

Flirty Ruffles Shawl
Yarn: Jaggerspun Zephyr Wool-silk white
Needle size: 2

I loved the yarn...it held up very well with ripping out and re-knitting. I suppose I should say more about it, but what is there left to say. It is now all wrapped and ready to go.( I just need to find a cardboard box to put it in). And I beat the thank you notes so I'm all good.

Broken Silence

Sorry for the silence lately. It was my weekend to work and I've just been beat. Plus COH has been the dominant presence on this computer. Now love is in load-in and its back in my hands.

I want to thank everyone for their words of support in regards to the fertility thing. We are not quite sure where we go from here, but it has by no means destroyed our lives. (we have work for that...just kidding(ish)). Flash your stash pictures will up coming. I can't believe that its that time of year again.

So far I've spent the morning cleaning and doing dishes. I'm probably going to spend most of the day getting a jump on spring cleaning. I usually reserve that for days I can open the windows with out freezing my butt off...but I'm off today and have the energy. Its a cloudy day here, but fairly light. No ran but there is still a damp chill in the house from yesterday. The cats are passed out cold as usual. Once I get a handle on the housekeeping, I'll play around with the sewing machine again.

Again I apologize for not blogging and having a less than riveting post when I do. I'll work on that.