Mr. Zaidi was subdued by a fellow journalist and then beaten by members of the prime minister’s security detail, who hauled him out of the room in his white socks. Mr. Zaidi’s cries could be heard from a nearby room as the news conference continued. [emphasis added]Not his "shouts" or his "protests" -- his "cries." So who's the savage in this story?
Tuesday, December 16, 2008
Shoe Protest
The Maliki government in Iraq said that the throwing of shoes at President Bush was a "shameful, savage act." Certainly Muntader al-Zaidi should suffer some minor penalty for his attempted assault. But "savage?" The NY Times reports:
Monday, December 15, 2008
Sweater = Sloth
Have I mentioned that I'm the laziest man alive? I've got some good ideas for blog essays -- commentary about on-line identity creation, for example, or musings about how magical our apartment would seem if described by someone from the Middle Ages (lightning harnessed in the walls, levers that bring water of any temperature into three different rooms) -- but when faced with the choice of either putting these thoughts into words or doing nothing, I choose sloth.
Here's evidence of how lazy I am:
Some of you are thinking, "You knit a whole sweater in 19 days!? You call that lazy?" Yep, 19 days of sitting on my butt. That's the dirty secret of gorgeous, prolific knitting: it's tangible evidence that the maker has done little else. (Still, win-win for me; I indulge my slothful ways, and wind up with a beautiful sweater).
It was super-easy, too. It's my third seamless hybrid sweater, so I've pretty much got this pattern down. Time for a challenge. When I finished knitting and writing up Wash's Sweater, I was eager to find a new fanboy knitting project. This week, Pushing Daisies came through for me with two sweater possibilities:
I'll have to wait until the series comes out on DVD to grab good pictures of the sweaters, but it looks like a great project for long, snowy weekends.
Here's evidence of how lazy I am:
Some of you are thinking, "You knit a whole sweater in 19 days!? You call that lazy?" Yep, 19 days of sitting on my butt. That's the dirty secret of gorgeous, prolific knitting: it's tangible evidence that the maker has done little else. (Still, win-win for me; I indulge my slothful ways, and wind up with a beautiful sweater).
It was super-easy, too. It's my third seamless hybrid sweater, so I've pretty much got this pattern down. Time for a challenge. When I finished knitting and writing up Wash's Sweater, I was eager to find a new fanboy knitting project. This week, Pushing Daisies came through for me with two sweater possibilities:
I'll have to wait until the series comes out on DVD to grab good pictures of the sweaters, but it looks like a great project for long, snowy weekends.
Tuesday, December 02, 2008
Grow up, old man
Yesterday, I finished listening to Maze of Bones, the first installment in Scholastic's The 39 Clues series, which the publisher hopes will help keep sales up now that the Harry Potter series has concluded.
It's not bad, certainly better than author Rick Riordan's other series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, which I found ghastly and unreadable. To be fair, I started it after working through all of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider books, which I loved. Riordan oversees the story arc, but he is only one of the writers that Scholastic is using to churn out the 10 book series in 2 years.
Time magazine described the series thusly: "If you forcibly interbred Lemony Snicket and National Treasure and chose the most viable of their mutant offspring, you might come up with something like The 39 Clues." Orphans Dan and Amy Cahill discover at their grandmother's funeral that their family is old and powerful, including seemingly all of the major figures of history. The will sends them off on a dangerous worldwide quest to track down the 39 Clues and find the Cahill Treasure, the secret of the family's power.
I found it interesting enough to create an account on The 39 Clues website. I felt a bit creepy scrolling all the way down to 1964 to select my birth year, but the site doesn't seem to be judging me. It asked me a series of questions to determine whichHogwarts house branch of the Cahill family I belong to.
I'm guessing it was a close call between this scientific branch and the Janus branch of artists and performers.
The second book in the series comes out today.
It's not bad, certainly better than author Rick Riordan's other series, Percy Jackson and the Olympians, which I found ghastly and unreadable. To be fair, I started it after working through all of Anthony Horowitz's Alex Rider books, which I loved. Riordan oversees the story arc, but he is only one of the writers that Scholastic is using to churn out the 10 book series in 2 years.
Time magazine described the series thusly: "If you forcibly interbred Lemony Snicket and National Treasure and chose the most viable of their mutant offspring, you might come up with something like The 39 Clues." Orphans Dan and Amy Cahill discover at their grandmother's funeral that their family is old and powerful, including seemingly all of the major figures of history. The will sends them off on a dangerous worldwide quest to track down the 39 Clues and find the Cahill Treasure, the secret of the family's power.
I found it interesting enough to create an account on The 39 Clues website. I felt a bit creepy scrolling all the way down to 1964 to select my birth year, but the site doesn't seem to be judging me. It asked me a series of questions to determine which
I'm guessing it was a close call between this scientific branch and the Janus branch of artists and performers.
The second book in the series comes out today.
Saturday, November 29, 2008
Look what I got
New license plates arrived today:
But that's not the exciting news. The picture of this license plate was taken and sent with my new iPhone!
But that's not the exciting news. The picture of this license plate was taken and sent with my new iPhone!
Thursday, November 20, 2008
Idiot forgets knitting, makes do
Is anyone else thrown off by the timing of Thanksgiving this year? I intended to spend the week of Thanksgiving with my sister in Maine. Instead, I booked my flight for the week before. I have continued to confuse dates (when rescheduling a haircut, when signing out for the week on my work intranet, etc.)
I can't blame my date confusion for this blunder though: I left on vacation without my messenger bag. This means I brought no knitting with me on the trip (or books, but I had an extra book in my suitcase). I don't think I've flown without a knitting project since 2000. So a trip to the knitting shops was called for, and long story short:
The yarn is Halcyon's Botanica, a line I've never noticed before. It has beautiful stitch definition and an attractive pallet. My plan is to knit a mostly plain, olive-colored sweater, with a few maize-colored stripes for accent.
Downeast Maine is lovely this week: cold but sunny. The cold gives me an excuse to wear thick, handknit sweaters, and I'm looking forward to being able to wear sweaters like this one in progress on days like today.
I can't blame my date confusion for this blunder though: I left on vacation without my messenger bag. This means I brought no knitting with me on the trip (or books, but I had an extra book in my suitcase). I don't think I've flown without a knitting project since 2000. So a trip to the knitting shops was called for, and long story short:
The yarn is Halcyon's Botanica, a line I've never noticed before. It has beautiful stitch definition and an attractive pallet. My plan is to knit a mostly plain, olive-colored sweater, with a few maize-colored stripes for accent.
Downeast Maine is lovely this week: cold but sunny. The cold gives me an excuse to wear thick, handknit sweaters, and I'm looking forward to being able to wear sweaters like this one in progress on days like today.
Friday, November 14, 2008
Sock Updates
No posts since Halloween? Clearly, I'm too lazy and boring to sustain a blog.
Here's the current sock in progress:
Standard fare, following my own Lesser Evil sock instructions and adding a simple but elegant twist on the usual cuff ribbing.
After finishing my Francie socks, I hunkered down for a bit in my secret lab to figure out how to clone that pattern from the toe-up. Turns out that it's not too hard:
But that experiment lies abandoned because, while the Francie sock looks cool, the truth is you can feel the ridges on the soles of your feet, which I know will drive most of my loved ones crazy. I even suspect that in this particular yarn I'm using, the socks will quickly leave blisters. I'm evil because my sock genius will overpower you, not because I actually want to inflict physical, sock-based harm.
Here's the current sock in progress:
Standard fare, following my own Lesser Evil sock instructions and adding a simple but elegant twist on the usual cuff ribbing.
After finishing my Francie socks, I hunkered down for a bit in my secret lab to figure out how to clone that pattern from the toe-up. Turns out that it's not too hard:
But that experiment lies abandoned because, while the Francie sock looks cool, the truth is you can feel the ridges on the soles of your feet, which I know will drive most of my loved ones crazy. I even suspect that in this particular yarn I'm using, the socks will quickly leave blisters. I'm evil because my sock genius will overpower you, not because I actually want to inflict physical, sock-based harm.
Friday, October 31, 2008
Sunday, October 12, 2008
One Down, One Up
This summer, I joined my first sock yarn club. For those who are unfamiliar with the concept: you pay a yarn company some set price up front, and for a certain span of time at regular intervals they will send you yarn and a pattern. The Unique Sheep company created such a club, the "Ram Club," specifically for men's socks; the skeins are bigger than most so there will be enough for men's larger feet, and the colorways are designed more-or-less for men's tastes.
I've really liked the first two shipments of yarn. The first contained two different, thin yarns with instructions to hold them together. The pattern was a toe-up design, but I only followed a portion of it -- the gusset and heel construction, using my own preferred toe method. I also didn't follow the stitch pattern, recognizing that these yarns would look good in a garter rib pattern.
I was initially disappointed in the second shipment because the color was so similar to the first. But I quickly fell in love with the texture of the tightly spun, sport weight merino in the second sock. Again, I glanced at and abandoned the accompanying pattern, deciding to try a popular sock pattern called Francie. I had tried Francie before, but I disliked both the yarn I used and the ribbing pattern on the cuff, so I abandoned it. Plus, Francie is made top down, and by now you know how I feel about that.
Still, in the Ram Club yarn with a more sedate and reliable 2x2 ribbing, a churned out a sock that I like very much.
Here's a shot of the bottom of the sock, which give you an idea how the ribbing flows around the foot.
I'm pretty happy with this, but I know it could be a better sock if it were constructed toe-up. I decided to try knitting the second sock backwards, seeing if I can make an identical sock with the stitches running the opposite way.
I've really liked the first two shipments of yarn. The first contained two different, thin yarns with instructions to hold them together. The pattern was a toe-up design, but I only followed a portion of it -- the gusset and heel construction, using my own preferred toe method. I also didn't follow the stitch pattern, recognizing that these yarns would look good in a garter rib pattern.
I was initially disappointed in the second shipment because the color was so similar to the first. But I quickly fell in love with the texture of the tightly spun, sport weight merino in the second sock. Again, I glanced at and abandoned the accompanying pattern, deciding to try a popular sock pattern called Francie. I had tried Francie before, but I disliked both the yarn I used and the ribbing pattern on the cuff, so I abandoned it. Plus, Francie is made top down, and by now you know how I feel about that.
Still, in the Ram Club yarn with a more sedate and reliable 2x2 ribbing, a churned out a sock that I like very much.
Here's a shot of the bottom of the sock, which give you an idea how the ribbing flows around the foot.
I'm pretty happy with this, but I know it could be a better sock if it were constructed toe-up. I decided to try knitting the second sock backwards, seeing if I can make an identical sock with the stitches running the opposite way.
Friday, October 10, 2008
Bookmobile Adventure 2008
I've been remiss about posting tedious updates about my knitting or tedious updates about exercising because work has been interesting.
Remember when I made two baby surprise jackets this summer? Well, both the mommies are still out on maternity leave, which produces an 80-hour-per-week staffing hole. The rest of the staff have been amazing about filling in, but they were getting tired, so I decided to step up and help: I offered to spend two weeks working on the bookmobile.
This has been a blast. Our service isn't actually a traditional bookmobile; instead, staff use wheeled bookcases to bring the materials into the places we visit. We set up a little mini-library in the lobbies, hallways, or activity rooms of various daycares, senior centers, or apartment complexes. We call it the WOW Mobile, "WOW" standing for "Words on Wheels." After grounds maintenance, it's the most physically demanding job of our library (those carts are heavy).
The first day, two of our stops were at the north end of our county service area, and the third was at the south end. I began to wonder if we needed to change the groupings. But it became clear as the days progressed that the Outreach Department does a good job of balancing the scheduling needs of their customers with the logistics of getting around the county. Still, I decided to keep adding the places I visit to the map:
View Larger Map
Because of meetings, I've had to cancel 3 of the 10 days that I'd planned to be out on the WOW, but I'm looking forward to making them up later this year.
Remember when I made two baby surprise jackets this summer? Well, both the mommies are still out on maternity leave, which produces an 80-hour-per-week staffing hole. The rest of the staff have been amazing about filling in, but they were getting tired, so I decided to step up and help: I offered to spend two weeks working on the bookmobile.
This has been a blast. Our service isn't actually a traditional bookmobile; instead, staff use wheeled bookcases to bring the materials into the places we visit. We set up a little mini-library in the lobbies, hallways, or activity rooms of various daycares, senior centers, or apartment complexes. We call it the WOW Mobile, "WOW" standing for "Words on Wheels." After grounds maintenance, it's the most physically demanding job of our library (those carts are heavy).
The first day, two of our stops were at the north end of our county service area, and the third was at the south end. I began to wonder if we needed to change the groupings. But it became clear as the days progressed that the Outreach Department does a good job of balancing the scheduling needs of their customers with the logistics of getting around the county. Still, I decided to keep adding the places I visit to the map:
View Larger Map
Because of meetings, I've had to cancel 3 of the 10 days that I'd planned to be out on the WOW, but I'm looking forward to making them up later this year.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Unbalanced
When I got the Wii, I knew I should also get the Wii Fit. I figured it would make a good Xmas present, so I put it on my wishlist. About a week ago, I realized that that was just a lame excuse to put off exercising until the end of the year.
The Wii Fit wonders why I don't fall down when I walk. I'm not kidding.
It calculates your Wii age based on your actual age, your BMI, and (at least in my case) your score in a couple balance tests. I'm terrible at the balance tests. I can't stop over-correcting when my balance indicator shifts out of the target position the game wants it to be. Yesterday I got lucky, and the random tests didn't ask me to shift my weight: only to stand perfectly still and to walk in place. My Wii age is 25, but I know it will spring back up to the mid-40's when I test it again.
Others have complained that the Fit's principle measurement of success is weight. My weight is pretty good; my BMI score is a click or two above ideal, but still within normal. Fit suggests I drop 15 pounds to get my BMI down to 22. After a couple days of resisting, I started actually trying, cutting out desserts, snacks, extra carbs.
The Wii Fit wonders why I don't fall down when I walk. I'm not kidding.
It calculates your Wii age based on your actual age, your BMI, and (at least in my case) your score in a couple balance tests. I'm terrible at the balance tests. I can't stop over-correcting when my balance indicator shifts out of the target position the game wants it to be. Yesterday I got lucky, and the random tests didn't ask me to shift my weight: only to stand perfectly still and to walk in place. My Wii age is 25, but I know it will spring back up to the mid-40's when I test it again.
Others have complained that the Fit's principle measurement of success is weight. My weight is pretty good; my BMI score is a click or two above ideal, but still within normal. Fit suggests I drop 15 pounds to get my BMI down to 22. After a couple days of resisting, I started actually trying, cutting out desserts, snacks, extra carbs.
Actual conversation that just happened: Mike walked into the room and said he was going to go pick up some donuts. "Do you want anything?"Weightloss and domestic tranquility: it's going to be a tough balancing act.
"No, thanks. Well, maybe I should eat something."
"I'm going to Donut Kitchen."
"Oh, well, then nothing, thanks."
"Want me to stop at Krogers?"
"No."
"Tim Horton's?"
"No!"
"Dodger," Mike says, addressing the cat who is waiting for his morning dose of butter, "Daddy's being cranky."
Saturday, September 06, 2008
Wash's Sweater Pattern
It's been quiet here because I've spent the weeks since the Olympics creating the pattern for Wash's Sweater.
Initially, I used Excel to create my adaptations of the cable pattern originally drafted by Maggs. I found great instructions for charting cables by Marnie MacLean. Results were satisfactory, but I wanted something better. I played with a few knitting fonts, and then shelled out the money for Knit Visualizer.
This program is awesome. Every stitch I needed was right there in the library. It took me almost no time at all to translate my work into Knit Visualizer. And the program can automatically generate a chart legend and text translation of each row.
I made my prototype sweater in the round, because that's what I do. But I could tell from screen caps that the actual sweater in the Firefly episodes was knit flat and seamed together, like Aran sweaters traditionally are. So working from my copy of Aran Knitting, I started drafting the pattern in Alice Starmore style, later revising toward a more Knitty.com style. Jeremy told me I should write up the pattern exactly as I did it, so when I was done with the flat version, I worked on a circular version. It's not exactly what I did: more like what I would do if I did it again.
I've spent the last week hammering away at the layout. This morning, I used PDF Online to convert my documents, and slapped together a quick homepage for the patterns.
I'd love to know what you think. Any suggestions for improving the instructions, charts, and layout, or offers to improve the graphics I've slapped together for the pattern and website are welcome.
Initially, I used Excel to create my adaptations of the cable pattern originally drafted by Maggs. I found great instructions for charting cables by Marnie MacLean. Results were satisfactory, but I wanted something better. I played with a few knitting fonts, and then shelled out the money for Knit Visualizer.
This program is awesome. Every stitch I needed was right there in the library. It took me almost no time at all to translate my work into Knit Visualizer. And the program can automatically generate a chart legend and text translation of each row.
I made my prototype sweater in the round, because that's what I do. But I could tell from screen caps that the actual sweater in the Firefly episodes was knit flat and seamed together, like Aran sweaters traditionally are. So working from my copy of Aran Knitting, I started drafting the pattern in Alice Starmore style, later revising toward a more Knitty.com style. Jeremy told me I should write up the pattern exactly as I did it, so when I was done with the flat version, I worked on a circular version. It's not exactly what I did: more like what I would do if I did it again.
I've spent the last week hammering away at the layout. This morning, I used PDF Online to convert my documents, and slapped together a quick homepage for the patterns.
I'd love to know what you think. Any suggestions for improving the instructions, charts, and layout, or offers to improve the graphics I've slapped together for the pattern and website are welcome.
Friday, August 22, 2008
Real Olympics
I've made good progress on the sweater this morning, so I thought I'd pause and offer these thoughts on the Real Olympics. I know we call them "the Olympic Games," but by and large "games" do not belong in the Olympic contests. I say these events must go:
I also say we ditch "Equestrian" for a species violation. And we should lose Rhythmic Gymnastics because its stupid.
- Badminton
- Baseball
- Basketball
- Beach Volleyball
- Boxing
- Fencing
- Football
- Handball
- Hockey
- Judo
- Softball
- Table Tennis
- Taekwondo
- Tennis
- Volleyball
- Water Polo
- Wrestling
I also say we ditch "Equestrian" for a species violation. And we should lose Rhythmic Gymnastics because its stupid.
Final Rounds
The Olympic Torch will be doused at noon, Eastern Daylight Time, on Sunday. Coincidentally, I have to start work at that time, but I'm off today and tomorrow, which (barring accidents) should be plenty of time to finish my Ravelympics project.
What remains is to shape the front of the neck, join the shoulders, lengthen and attach the sleeves, and knit the collar. The first of these remaining tasks will be the trickiest for me. No pattern; just working from screen caps.
It probably would be bad luck at this time to say, "I am a leaf on the wind; watch how I soar."
What remains is to shape the front of the neck, join the shoulders, lengthen and attach the sleeves, and knit the collar. The first of these remaining tasks will be the trickiest for me. No pattern; just working from screen caps.
It probably would be bad luck at this time to say, "I am a leaf on the wind; watch how I soar."
Monday, August 18, 2008
Ravelympic Moment
[fanfare] DA-da-da DA-da-da DA-da DA-dl-aaaaa! [/fanfare]
Yarmando has performed strongly so far during the Ravelympics, rapidly progressing through the qualifying rounds of his event, "Work In Progress Wrestling." But he made a fatal error in judgment this evening which, even more than costing him the gold, could place him out of medal contention entirely.
Fans will know that Yarmando began training with Team Browncoat in early March. His commitment was spotty, but he seized the chance to enter Ravelympics and emerge a champion, with the Wash Sweater finally finished.
When the torch was lit, the body was already complete to the underarms, and the sleeves had barely begun. Yarmando chose to work the sleeves with a high degree of difficulty: knitting both sleeves at once. This would slow progress, but also insure that the sleeves were identical in construction, the rates of increase perfectly synchronized.
For extra style points, Yarmando had chosen to knit the sweater seamlessly in the round. Some of the judges are likely to subtract points from the authenticity of the finished object, but others will appreciate the adherence to traditions set by the great Elizabeth Zimmerman.
Sadly, Yarmando discovered that, for this particular design, Zimmerman's ingenious method of combining the sleeves with the upper body would clash with the established cables. Though it might appear to observers that he was showing strong progress, he was losing his form. After some soul-searching, he forfeited the latest round (the latest 8 rounds, in fact), losing an entire day's work.
Hope is not lost. Yarmando performed well in this event in the past, and so his fans and coaches know he has it in him. But is there time for him to change design direction before the Olympic torch is extinguished?
Yarmando has performed strongly so far during the Ravelympics, rapidly progressing through the qualifying rounds of his event, "Work In Progress Wrestling." But he made a fatal error in judgment this evening which, even more than costing him the gold, could place him out of medal contention entirely.Fans will know that Yarmando began training with Team Browncoat in early March. His commitment was spotty, but he seized the chance to enter Ravelympics and emerge a champion, with the Wash Sweater finally finished.
When the torch was lit, the body was already complete to the underarms, and the sleeves had barely begun. Yarmando chose to work the sleeves with a high degree of difficulty: knitting both sleeves at once. This would slow progress, but also insure that the sleeves were identical in construction, the rates of increase perfectly synchronized.
For extra style points, Yarmando had chosen to knit the sweater seamlessly in the round. Some of the judges are likely to subtract points from the authenticity of the finished object, but others will appreciate the adherence to traditions set by the great Elizabeth Zimmerman.
Sadly, Yarmando discovered that, for this particular design, Zimmerman's ingenious method of combining the sleeves with the upper body would clash with the established cables. Though it might appear to observers that he was showing strong progress, he was losing his form. After some soul-searching, he forfeited the latest round (the latest 8 rounds, in fact), losing an entire day's work.
Hope is not lost. Yarmando performed well in this event in the past, and so his fans and coaches know he has it in him. But is there time for him to change design direction before the Olympic torch is extinguished?
Wednesday, August 06, 2008
License Plate Time Again
Any day now, I should be getting my renewal notice from the DMV. We know that TOE UP is out of the question. My favorite contenders are these:
I'm most partial to MUWAHAA. I'd rather have MWAHAHA, but it wasn't available. BWAHAHA is available, but sounds more like I'm erupting in a guffaw than chuckling evilly.
I'm most partial to MUWAHAA. I'd rather have MWAHAHA, but it wasn't available. BWAHAHA is available, but sounds more like I'm erupting in a guffaw than chuckling evilly.
Saturday, August 02, 2008
Get Mii
During my vacation in Maine last month, I was continually rewarded by spontaneity. One of us would suggest something random, we'd decide to do it, and it was great. So that's why, after a couple pomegranate martinis at dinner, I said, "Let's go to Target; I bet they have Wiis in stock." They did, and I bought one. At left is sort of what my Mii looks like, created using My Avatar Editor.Mike tolerates the new toy, but I'm really enjoying it. My back and shoulders have a pleasant exercise-related ache. Bizarrely, I seem most to be enjoying the golf game. I really don't like golf (it's a "good walk spoiled," as Mark Twain probably never said.) In a week, I managed to get up to pro status.
Amazon wish list has become padded with Wii-lated loot. I'm ridiculously excited about Clone Wars for the Wii: light saber dueling!
Saturday, July 26, 2008
Copycat Spiral Yoke
Last year, I was out in Maine when BrooklynTweed posted photos of Cobblestone on his blog. I should have started knitting it immediately. Instead, I started knitting something else that I just had to frog in favor of the Cobblestone. His Spiral Yoke sweater looks intriguing, but I have my doubts. Still, I've learned my lesson:
I made my sister drive me to yarn stores in search of some worsted merino. I hit the jackpot at Purl Diva. Loki the shop dog was hopped up on dog treats and kept barking at me, but Ellen was great. She looked up the sweater on Ravelry, suggested good alternative yarns, and I found ample amounts.
I've started the project three times, trying to get the tubular cast-on right. Finally, I found TECHknitter's instructions. Easy to follow, quick, and with a beautiful result. I was so turned on by this cast-on that I....
Well, I better just stop there.
Thanks, Gerald, for the bit of Blimey that not only completed Mike's socks but provided a bright contrasting tail for the tubular cast-on.
I'll work on this until the Olympics start. I've joined Team Browncoat in Ravelympics, hoping to complete the Wash Sweater before the Olympic flame goes out on August 24.
Obey the Tweed.
I made my sister drive me to yarn stores in search of some worsted merino. I hit the jackpot at Purl Diva. Loki the shop dog was hopped up on dog treats and kept barking at me, but Ellen was great. She looked up the sweater on Ravelry, suggested good alternative yarns, and I found ample amounts.
I've started the project three times, trying to get the tubular cast-on right. Finally, I found TECHknitter's instructions. Easy to follow, quick, and with a beautiful result. I was so turned on by this cast-on that I....
Well, I better just stop there.
Thanks, Gerald, for the bit of Blimey that not only completed Mike's socks but provided a bright contrasting tail for the tubular cast-on.
I'll work on this until the Olympics start. I've joined Team Browncoat in Ravelympics, hoping to complete the Wash Sweater before the Olympic flame goes out on August 24.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Vacation Tweets
I don't use Twitter with my phone. If I did, this is probably what I would've tweeted in the past few days:
Landed only 20 min late. Resolution: only carbs on this trip will be alcohol, breakfast, or frozen.
11:00 AM July 16, 2008 from txt
Maine International Film Festival. http://asenseofwonderfilm.com
06:30 PM July 16, 2008 from txt
If I had iPhone, I would look up voice actors for WALL-E.
01:30 PM July 17, 2008 from txt
Buying handspun from Pine Tree Yarns in Damariscotta. Next: sit on rocks @ Pemaquid until I forget my name.
11:00 AM July 18, 2008 from txt
Fresh mussels with linguini and house marinara @ Scarlet Begonia. Brownie batter & pnut butter cup @ Gelato Fiasco.
06:00 PM July 18, 2008 from txt
LOL http://drhorrible.com -- "The hammer is my penis."
08:00 AM July 19, 2008 from txt
Landed only 20 min late. Resolution: only carbs on this trip will be alcohol, breakfast, or frozen.
11:00 AM July 16, 2008 from txt
Maine International Film Festival. http://asenseofwonderfilm.com
06:30 PM July 16, 2008 from txt
If I had iPhone, I would look up voice actors for WALL-E.
01:30 PM July 17, 2008 from txt
Buying handspun from Pine Tree Yarns in Damariscotta. Next: sit on rocks @ Pemaquid until I forget my name.
11:00 AM July 18, 2008 from txt
Fresh mussels with linguini and house marinara @ Scarlet Begonia. Brownie batter & pnut butter cup @ Gelato Fiasco.
06:00 PM July 18, 2008 from txt
LOL http://drhorrible.com -- "The hammer is my penis."
08:00 AM July 19, 2008 from txt
Sunday, July 13, 2008
I hate sewing
Two of my staff are having baby girls this summer (one could be giving birth at this very minute). I got a late start on knitting them some gifts, but managed to crank out two Baby Surprise Jackets pretty quickly -- at least the knitting part.
See, this is why I like socks: you bind off the cuff or graft the toe, and *poof*, you're done. These jackets require minimal sewing, but still required 10 inches of seam and 5 buttons each.
Nevertheless, they're done, and they are cute, aren't they?
See, this is why I like socks: you bind off the cuff or graft the toe, and *poof*, you're done. These jackets require minimal sewing, but still required 10 inches of seam and 5 buttons each.
Nevertheless, they're done, and they are cute, aren't they?
Sunday, July 06, 2008
Anti-Social Follow-Up
My last post doesn't make this clear: I'm not categorically against the social web. One of the things I love most about the Internet is how it creates communities of common interest. I'm also a fan of innovation and dabbling:
- I joined LibraryThing in November 2005, but it wasn't until I discovered the blog widget nearly a year later that I really started using it.
- I first tried Twitter in April 2007, but it was annoying and useless. This spring, after more people I actually know had joined, I reanimated my account, and have found that I've enjoyed the random messages from friends during the day.
- I created my del.icio.us account in December 2005. Intellectually, I know it's a good and useful service, but I'm still struggling to integrate it into my daily life.
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