Bad Day indeed!

It's 10:40pm and I'm in the LA airport. I should be in the air right now but my flight scheduled for 9:10 was delayed to 11:49pm. I forgot to mention that we've been here since 5:20pm-ish. It's been a long day. At this point we'll get in to Eugene at 2:30am. Which is better than the alternative: sleeping in the airport overnight. *knock on wood*

The good news is that I was able to work via wireless from a sports bar at the terminal. So at least the entire day wasn't wasted!

In other news, I have two inflamed zits forming on my face. Yesss! I just heard that song "Bad Day" and thought of Faythe.

Blue Brick Wall

I was surprised when I opened my package and saw this yarn. It's quite a bit different than the photo on the site, what with the purple and brown tones. I even considered returning the yarn but Tina at BMFA talked me out of it when she told me the inspiration behind Blue Brick Wall.

Apparently she used to travel to India a lot where she saw a magnificent blue brick wall in Madras. That wall became the inspiration behind this colorway. Once it had a story, I had to keep it. And so far I'm not disappointed as to how it looks with this linen stitch. I think BMFA would sell more yarn if they told their inspiration behind the different colors. I'm a sucker for marketing and I'm pretty sure others are too.

More evidence that Faythe is crazier than I am

Have you read Faythe's latest rant? Apparently she had food poisoning and spent much of her time on the toilet. The funny part is how I got an email from Faythe's Mom with her side of the story.

"It went okay until Faith got sick and she wouldn't listen to me when I told her to limit her food intake. She just kept on eating whatever she wanted."

Hilaaaaaarious!!

A storm is brewing

I'm not a fan of flying. It's not that I'm afraid of the actual flight, but rather the annoyances that come with it. First, I'm always afraid I'm going to be told that I'm too fat for one seat. Secondly, there's the whole getting to the airport on time, changing planes with short layovers in unfamiliar airports, etc. And then there's the quick decision making when you have to buy a ticket last minute online. I hate those cheap ticket websites! They all make it seem like you're getting a good deal but when you get ready to make your purchase, you realize they're listing the one way prices only, pre-tax. Or how about looking at prices in morning and checking back in that evening when you have the money and the prices have dramatically raised?

To top it off, I keep hearing stories of family members fighting over another not-yet deceased family members items and how they feel entitled to something, just because they're the child of the terminally ill person. More stories of redneck behavior, screaming children, funeral talk, headstone decisions, casket transportation...well, it's just about all I can take. If it wasn't for the fact that I'll be saying goodbye to someone for the last time, I wouldn't go. I just wish these people would grow up and stop thinking so selfishly.

I finally commited to a flight into Oregon and back. The fact we'll be taking a turboprop has disturbed Apollo but he's in for a big surprise when he see's the Eugene airport!

I just hope I can spend some good quality time with my Grandpa before he leaves us. The flight, the struggle, it will be worth it.

Taking in the scenery

Mom and Aimee look across the bay towards downtown San Diego from Coronado. Mom's obsessed with the airplanes that seemingly fly between the buildings when coming in for a landing and always gets excited when she seems them: this is a great vantage point for watching plans "nearly" fly into buildings. Much of our time last year was spent trying to get near hit photographs. She's like a little kid when it comes to the airplanes.

Merry Christmas!

Yes, that's right, I said it! No "Happy Holidays" for me. After all, the holiday is supposed to represent Christ's birth, not presents! Presents are nice though. :) Keep 'em coming!

Meanwhile, check out this swag Mom made for me the first night of her stay!

Rock and Weave Bunny Foo Foo's

I gave Aimee her socks already so I can finally show them to you. I'm still unsure if they fit her correctly...I think the cuff may be a little too big. The socks are basically comprised of a knitted strip (which becomes the cuff) on the side of which you pick up the appropriate number of stitches and knit a sock. Two buttons are added to keep the cuff together.

Pattern: Rock and Weave by A. Karen Alfke
Materials: One hank Socks that Rock Little Bunny Foo Foo, four 1/2 inch shell buttons

Exhausted.

We got up at 4am this morning and took Mom and Tyler to Amtrak. After breakfast, a short nap, a mani and pedicure, we went to check out the Bodies Exhibition at UTC.

While fascinating (the diseased lungs made the biggest impact on me), I couldn't help but wonder who these people pissed off and what their offense was.

Sure, the guides at the exhibit will tell you that all the bodies were donated to science after Chinese officials failed to identify them or locate their next of kin. Still, considering the human rights violations in China, anything is possible.

Anyway, through the process of Plastination, liquids in the body are replaced with polymer or other such chemicals. You can read more about it here. This enables us to see veins, arteries, nerves etc.

Honestly, when I went to see the exhibit, it was out of an intellectual interest in the human body. I had never considered it to be gory, disrespectful or even controversial. I still don't think it was gory or disrespectful but I can see where the controversy would fall in to place.

Now that the family is gone, I just may go to bed before midnight. I'm aiming at 10pm tonight. Yay. Tired.

Trying to sneak in trip to liquor store

Maybe after Seaworld?

The cats breaking Mom in

On Mom's first day, Zoe looked at Mom and then threw up on the rug in front of her. She then casually walked away, leaving Mom staring at the mess.

Today, the second day, Simba jumped out of the litter box, scooted his butt across the carpet in front of Mom and then ran off, rubbing poo into his fur and the carpet. While I caught the cat so I could clean up what remained stuck to him, I could hear Mom talking about the stink. I finally got to the poo that was matted into the carpet, all the while Mom begged me to cover up the remaining turds in the litter box.

I wonder what they have planned for tomorrow?

No alcohol yet

We're currently watching the Mutual of Omaha's Wild Kingdom on Animal Planet. I think we've spent about two or so hours on various animal shows. Though we're watching and listening to the current show about Alaskan bears, Mom is speaking over the narrator and correcting him when he's wrong, has left out information or she just wants to add her opinion.

We finally used the limbs cut off from the bottom of the Christmas tree to make what I think is called a swag for our door. We also fixed up some fake wreaths for the two doors in front of the building. It was fun putting them together with Mom. The best part was the mother/daughter struggle over who knew how to correctly attach the swag to our front door.

Oh, by the way. Aimee, Mom wants you to take care of the hangnail on her toe when you get here.

The usual holiday antics begin

Mom just called me from Emeryville, CA. She's currently on an Amtrak train because she mistrusts airplanes and is afraid of the heights. I may have neglected to tell her about all the recent train accidents.

Anyway, so she's in Emeryville and her voice sounds scratchy from lack of sleep - I can imagine her eyes are pretty big too from all the staring at people around her. She tells me a story about some crazy lady at one of the train stops. (There's always at least one crazy person on the train when she travels. One day she'll be the crazy lady everyone talks about.) Our conversation goes something like this:

Me: So your train is on time?
Mom: Yes, we were almost late but right now we're stopped at Emeryville...oh can you hear the guy on the loudspeaker?
Guy on loudspeaker: Next stop, Oakland. Please have your tickets and ID out.
Me: Yep, he said something about Oakland and to have your tickets and ID ready.
Mom: Did you hear? He said our next stop is Oakland and to have our tickets and ID out.
Me: .
Mom: Rayleen?? RAYLEEN!?
Me: I'm here, Mom.
Mom: Well I think I'm going to go since I'm losing you, I didn't hear what you said at all. I'm going to turn this thing off since the only charger I have is the one for the car and I don't have the type you plug into your house.
Me: Well, you can check the battery if you want and see how much power you have.
Mom: And plus when it rings, it wakes everyone up around me and I can't get it out in time to turn it off.
Me: You know you can turn down the volume.
Mom: And it's so loud....hey the chicken coop is finally done! Except I don't have any chickens.
Me: Mom, have you tried turning down the volume?
Mom: What? How do you do that?

And so on. Oh, it's going to be a fun week! I'll update you on my sanity as the week progresses.

I'm not sure why I'm not in bed yet

My drive to and from work can last anywhere from 35 minutes to over an hour, depending on the days events or accidents. During my commute while avoiding wood pallets, drunk drivers or tire peelings, I have a lot of time to contemplate life. Like this morning when I realized I have a new freckle growing in next to my upper lip. It dawned on me that if anything should happen to my Cindy Crawford mole (like if it should pack up and leave, etc), this new freckle could totally step in and take over! I even covered The Mole with one finger to see what my face would look like without it and while it's not quite the same, I think it'll do. Yep, Mini-Mole will make a fine substitute.

Anyway, that's the sort of thing I think about while driving. Yep.

Suspicious Activity

Simba got in trouble last night.

It all started when I walked into the bedroom, turned on the light and saw Simba standing in the middle of the bed, staring at me. This is what we consider to be Suspicious Activity. You see, Simba has a track record of peeing on the bed. We don't know why. It may be due to jealousy or frustration, who knows. If only he could leave a Post-it explaining to us why he's doing it. I assume he would say something like this:

So after I saw Simba, he ran out of the room. About an hour later, Apollo went into the bedroom and saw Simba on the bed in the same spot. As soon as Apollo turned on the light - well, if it's possible for a cat to break the sound barrier from running, he would have. Apollo checked and sure enough, cat urine! We don't really know if it's Simba or Zoe but Simba is always the one in the area with Suspicious Activity (such as sniffing the bed or giving us the "huh?" look) when the urine is discovered. I suppose it's possible that Zoe is also one of the contributors but she never acts suspicious or is caught near the urine. She also doesn't act guilty or run at the smell of cat urine. Wouldn't it be awful if she was guilty and Simba was the one that always got in trouble? Is it possible she is so sneaky that she knows she won't get in trouble so she doesn't react?

This is always a possibility:

But since it only happens once or twice a year, I don't think it could be a UI.

If only cats could write! Then again, if they could the world would be full of all sorts of elitist prose. I think we have enough of that as it is.

More ghetto please

I came home from work yesterday to see some of the lights set up on the faux balcony outside. It was pretty.


Upon closer examination, I saw something interesting. Extension cords outside! I wasn't too surprised though, I've seen worse!

Since then more decorations have been added, it looks even better. :) And yes, with the same extension cord outside the window. Did I mention that it's been raining here lately?

Faythe is crazier than I am!

"You scored 25% intoxication, 50% hotness, 75% complexity, and 25% craziness!"

You are Fennel! You're a cool cat. Crisp, clean, fresh, and extremely complicated. You're like quantum physics or modern jazz. Think Niels Bohr meets Ornette Coleman. You may look normal now, but once you sprout, you look kind of, uh, funny.

Link: The Which Spice Are You Test written by jodiesattva on OkCupid Free Online Dating, home of the The Dating Persona Test

Sneaky cat

Well, I just listed a Wii for a ridiculous price on eBay. We'll see if it sells!

On another horizon of That Which Shouldn't Be, Apollo caught Simba walking on the kitchen counter this morning! He only knew because Zoe kept looking upwards in the direction of the kitchen. When he peered around the corner, there was Simba doing a tight rope walk on the tile in front of the sink. I'm beginning to suspect Simba walks on the counters at night when we sleep.

After he was busted, Simba ran into the bedroom and hid. Apollo didn't have to say anything other then "Simba!" You can't say he didn't know what he was doing was wrong!!

"I Know Who Killed Me"

And now I know why this movie flopped! And it wasn't because of Lohan's publicity issues when the movie was released, either. The over use of the color blue was annoying, the "twist" was so far fetched...meh! And the end? Pulease!

Though I've heard that most people watched this film due to Lohan's pole dancing scenes, I don't even think they made it worth it. Even so, they only last a few minutes so you could theoretically look for them in the chapter selection and be done with it.

Otherwise, don't waste your time.

Nothing to see here folks, just move along

Have you ever been at a point of desperation where you just wanted to knit something and GAH you only have 3 dpns and you need 4? Yesterday I brought my sock with me and at lunch time when I got ready to knit, I realized I was short a needle! Faythe was equally mortified at the prospect of my sitting there staring at a partially knitted sock and an hour of time on my hands with nothing to do. Together we brainstormed...ok not together, really. I sulked while Faythe gave me some ideas.

We tried three different items and none of them met my needs. I've considered creating an Emergency Knit kit for the office but that would take energy and I need to focus my energies on knitting socks and avoiding images of cat scratched testicles. At least I assume that was what caused the injury. After I scrolled down the page and saw the picture, I didn't bother reading any further. I am scarred for life. There's nothing like a pair of pasty, pink balls with veins and fur to permanently scar an unsuspecting innocent.

And for the record, the items and their gauge are:

jumbo paper clip - approx 1mm or less
ink pen capsule - 3.25mm
plastic coffee stir stick - 3.75mm (also serves as a 2.5mm needle cozy)

So I guess if you're desperate enough and they are the correct gauge, you could fake it until you get your hands on a real needle.

BTW, no balls were harmed in the making of THIS post!

Holiday desserts anyone

I was thinking it'd be fun to make some desserts this holiday season that I don't normally make. BHAHAHAHAHA! Who am I kidding! Since I moved to Cali, I don't bake at all!

So I'm trying to think of something fun I could make for old times sake. I'm not really interested in pie. Maybe a rum cake? Or a custard?

While looking for interesting recipe's, I saw this advertisement.

HEHEHE! Watch out Faythe, Cool Whip is this season's secret ingredient. You'll never know if you're eating it! For the record, I don't really see anything wrong with Cool Whip. Sure, there's a difference in quality but it doesn't bother me. Now, if only I could sign Faythe up for Cool Whip recipe's via email.

Oh, I was going to ask if anyone has any holiday dessert recipe's they recommend - thanks!

Christmas shopping (don't forget the knitting)

I know it's not even December, but already have at least half my Christmas shopping done. I started out this summer picking up a few items here and there, storing them in The Christmas Drawer. People thought I was crazy but it's really helped! It's given me time to, you guessed it, knit! Oh, and experiment with yarn I wouldn't normally buy.

For example, I recently decided to try out some of the medium weight Socks that Rock. Well, I don't think I like it. It's just so dang thick! I bought it for a specific pattern but after I started working it, realized I could just as easily adjust my gauge and use the lightweight.


Though I suppose people that live in colder climates would like it, I think I'm going to stick with the lightweight, which is still thicker than most other sock yarns.

Speaking of shopping, I went to Michael's today and hit the mother load of all sales! OK well maybe not quite the mother load but nearly everything I bought was on sale. We used coupons on the only two items which weren't on sale.

I've also decided to do most of my holiday shopping online again this year. It was such a success last year and really helped to alleviate any stress. I also think it saves me money since I'm not picking up any extra items that might catch my eye in the stores.

One of my latest finds is the Apple store filled with refurbished iPods. They come with the warranty and look just like new. There's other refurbished Apple stuff if you're interested. If you're looking for other deals, try SlickDeals.net or FatWallet.com. Good luck!

Junk in my trunk

I had a traumatic experience yesterday. No, I didn't join in on the early sales for Black Friday. I weight the pro's and con's of getting up early and joining the crazy early morning shoppers, then scurrying out the door just so I could start my shift at 9am. Because I knew exactly what I would get in the store (since most of my shopping is going to be done online), I did a little math and realized I would only save $20. Then I thought about how early I'd probably have to get up, around 3am, just to get that deal, and suddenly the $20 deal didn't seem like such a deal after all. So I slept in and worked my shift like normal.

That doesn't mean I held back on shopping all together. In fact, Friday evening I went to three different stores for a couple hours. I ended up trying on some clothes and...well this is where the trauma started. I was in the dressing room when something caught my eye in the mirror. It was my butt! IT'S HUGE! I mean, the dimensions shocked me! It's OUT THERE. It's like an appendage!!

Anyway, I'm still traumatized by it all. *sigh*

Hazel Knits

For those of you who like to purchase yarn online, I highly suggest you check out one of my recent finds, Hazel Knits. Actually, if you don't purchase yarn online, you should give it a try! I've never had a bad experience and sellers are always very friendly.

The owner of Hazel Knits is really nice, so much that we have had a few email exchanges. I'm a little afraid I'll scare her off though. I keep thinking of that time I told my hair dresser, after I found him at his new salon, that I had "Internet stalked" him because I was so desperate to find him again. There was a long, uncomfortable silence - I hoped it was because he's partially deaf and didn't hear me. Kind of like the time he called me and I was so ecstatic to see his name on my caller ID that I answered my cell without thinking while in the bathroom and I couldn't hold back the tinkling that echoed throughout the room. *sigh* I don't know what I'd do if he cut me loose! Hopefully I haven't scared Wendee off yet!

I recently had a yarn seizure and bought more yarn in the same colors I've purchased in the past with a new addition to my Christmas stash: Chocolatier. Actually, it was more of a comfort purchase. There's nothing like some good quality yarn to make a person feel better! Not to mention there are no calories involved.

From left: Denim Blues, Chocolatier, and Sailors Delight. Not only are they gorgeous but I love knitting with them. If you're familiar with Socks that Rock or Lorna's Laces, I'd guess that the weight of this yarn lies somewhere between the two. I can never take a picture with the colors showing accurately so please be sure to check out the Hazel Knits site for better images.

Wendee also included some stitch markers in my orders as a thank you. I tried to take a picture but sadly, they didn't look as good in the photos as they do in real life. You'll probably see them in upcoming projects, though. :) You can never have too many stitch markers!

Meanwhile, I'm working on keeping The Crazy, which I have obviously inherited from my Mom, to a minimum.

We were due a shooting

Apollo called me tonight at work around 9PM and told me, "A man was shot and the 805 is closed down." I checked Sigalert before leaving work and while it showed some slowing traffic, there was nothing to indicate closure so I decided to risk it.

Well, was I surprised when I drove around a bend a couple miles from my place and saw the mass of red tail lights in front of me! Five lanes of traffic were merging into two where we were rerouted onto the 8, which goes east or west. We had been going south. I took the long way home, picked up Apollo and went for a drive to see if we could see what's going on.

We saw a ton of marked and unmarked police cars on El Cajon Boulevard, at least two entire blocks were taped off. We then drove down a side street that looks over the 805 and stopped to see what had caused the entire freeway to be closed down in both directions. There were about 30 police and other assorted cars there too. Some of the cars apparently had civilians in them, we assumed they were witnesses. This is where we saw the body lying on the ground in front of one of the cars.

We learned from a stoned guy who had recently been released from the penitentiary but called himself "Mr. Mom pushing a stroller down the ghetto" that a couple bodies were lying in an alley near his apartment. Because he was bleeding profusely from one of his fingers and was very animated about police and kept waving his arms around, etc, we left that area and went down the street to talk to one of the policemen who was guarding a taped off area.

We learned from the officer that the guy laying on the 805 in front of us shot at least two people near 34th, was pursued by police and then when he shot at police, they shot back and killed him. The details were sketchy but for whatever reasons he ended up on foot down by the side of the busy interstate. An officer was also injured during the incident and was taken to a local hospital.

Some of the police cars were pointed in odd directions and one of them had a window shot out. There was also a rumor over the police scanner (on the policeman) that the man had been run over by a police car. We stayed and talked to the policeman for quite a while, during which some stupid gangster kids walked by and insulted him, making that stupid "sssst ssssssssssst" to intimidate him. They were upset because the man's body wasn't covered but he said there was nothing that could be done about it. Apparently once the body is covered, evidence is destroyed. He said that the interstate would probably be closed until Sunday morning.

The policeman was a nice guy. We talked to him for at least an hour about everything from football to kids-these-days. I truly don't understand why so many people are cop haters. Oh, did you know that Cop is actually C.O.P. and stands for Constable On Patrol? Me either.

I made the picture small but if you're gruesome like me, click to see it bigger. Believe me, there's no real detail in it, but still some people might not like it.

Anyway, it's almost 3am. I need to go to bed.

Approx one month of actual knitting time left

As I realized we're almost half way through the month of November, a little bit of my knitterly soul went into over-drive, causing me to ransack my "yarn treasure chest" and several bags hidden deep within the depths of my bedroom. Yarn I forgot I owned (and wondered why I purchased) was discovered, along with some extra needles and WIP's.

In my hunt I found some Wool-Ease appropriate for a teen, meaning it should hold up to his Oregon ranch lifestyle and is manly enough for an ear flap hat for an almost-man, not quite kid.

BTW, I started this blue sock tonight. The look I'm going for is understated but colorful.

You know, since Mom, Tyler and Aimee will be visiting me mid-December, my knitting time is seriously depleted. Especially since Mom wants to window shop and do touristy stuff, Apollo wants to take Tyler out for "man stuff" and Aimee just wants to hang out. I have a feeling we're going to be busy.

Today's musings

1) There was a lot of grumbling today, done by me. Apollo agreed that I seem to be getting crankier and crankier the older I get. It doesn't take much to get me wound up. I sense this means I'll end up being one of those mean old ladies that lives down the street with ten+ cats. Meanwhile, I'm shocked that Apollo would agree that I'm cranky! He then went on to say that only he and Simba could put up with me! Zoe, he said, doesn't give a damn.

2) While filling out a form today at Lens Crafters, I was stumped at the "age" section. I filled out the age I assume I am and ignored the obvious mathematical error. Does it really matter anymore? Must figure out age!

3) No need to get all wound up at annoying people. It may cause blood pressure to go up resulting in lady at Lens Crafters getting big wide eyes, staring at blood pressure machine while having machine do the test a second time. Then again, her stumbling over what to say when asked "Is something wrong" and averting her eyes wasn't very comforting. Jokes in tense situation do not make everyone laugh. Back to cranky thoughts.

4) I've always wondered, why do scented tampons exist? I could understand if their function was outside the body...

5) I recently purchased the Interweave Knits 2007 Holiday Gifts magazine. I carefully peeled back each page and wondered if this is what it's all come down to. Me in my 30's, spoiled cats, knitting, wool, a laptop open in front of me. But at least I paid my DMV registration a month early today. I feel better already.

6) Reminder: Amazon.com = good, Fry's = bad. Most Christmas shopping will take place online this year. People, please update your Amazon wishlists!

Sunset Monkey's completed!

Pattern: Monkey by Cookie A.
Yarn: Hazel Knits Artisan Sock Yarn in Sailor's Delight

Monkey progress

I'm having a hard time getting a picture that accurately shows the colors but this is close. Just imagine it a little bit brighter.

I'm halfway through the second sock and will probably finish it tomorrow. I don't normally block socks, but I'll definitely block these, just for presentation sake when I give them away. The next time I try this pattern I'm going to see what it looks like without any purl stitches, only knit and YO's.

Oh, I also copied you, Faythe. I was thinking about Interweave Knits and everything you brought up. After some research, I decided to get it too. I'm looking forward to my first edition! After Christmas I plan on knitting something other than socks, maybe IK will inspire me!

If you've ever worked in tech support, this will be hilaaaaaaaarious

No reason

Ever have one of those days where you see your own reflection and you think, ew my boobs are so gross, they're so obvious and...nippley! (Damn that AC!!)

Oh.

So I bought more yarn. It was either that or eat something really bad. Or drink.

It's funny, even while it's wrong

It seems credible. And hilarious! Maybe Shawn should get Boomer a Hello Kitty tattoo! That way if she comes up missing, she'll have a clear identifier!!


Part of what makes this so wrong, besides the whole tattooing your dog thing, is what appears to be a doggie nipple in this picture. Maybe it's a mole. Either way, yikes!

Oooh, ahh

Today has been a long day. I was up at 4:40am so I could get to work by 6:00am. A live event and several cups of coffee kept me going all day long, even through the evening as I knit on my first Monkey sock. That's all I have to share today. That and this neato picture I'm currently using as my desktop. I left the shutter open on my camera for a couple seconds to get this shot of the Golden Gate bridge in Frisco.

Yet another Monkey

Well, I decided to give in and join the rest of the knitting community and make myself a pair of Monkeys. Yes, it's true that when I first saw them I thought, "Nice pattern but who would want to wear that on their feet?" Maybe they've just grown on me or maybe reading so many people's comments about their being addictive and fun, I threw in the hat. Or the needle. I had also recently purchased some hand dyed yarn from Hazel Knits on Etsy and decided this was an excellent opportunity to knit up Sailors Delight.


Though I've just barely started, I can see why so many people enjoy the pattern. I guess it's because you're knitting and purling with blind faith and suddenly this pattern appears before you like magic. And the colors look great too!

The Perfect Recipe

Brianna recently asked me to join in on a recipe exchange. I thought about it and could only think of one good recipe I know, so I decided to share it with everyone.

The Perfect Recipe

Ingredients:
$20 - $50 cash
Car
Boyfriend/Husband
Grocery store

Begin by giving your boyfriend/husband some money. I recommend $20 to $50, depending on the quality of food you anticipate eating. Next, give him the keys to your car and ask him to go to the store and buy anything he wants. Bat eyelashes and/or feign a headache. Or, in my world, tell him you have a sock to knit and the latest DVD of Little House on the Prairie arrived from Blockbuster.com so you're too busy.

Wait 2.5 hours for boyfriend/husband to shop for meat products (because we all know that's what he's going to get) and to visit with all his friends. He'll probably go to three or four different stores to buy three different items, give a friend a ride somewhere or sit idling while talking to a long lost buddy, so you might want to make sure you have plenty of gas in the car. If you're bored, try calling him a few times on your cell phone but don't expect an answer. The car stereo will be too loud, especially since he probably turns up the base. But if you really want to freak him out, hit redial about fifteen times so when he checks his phone next, he'll see that you blew it up. hehe

Finally, he arrives. By no means, do not stop what you're doing. He'll probably be carrying several bags of food from several different stores. One of them will contain only one can of cat food. He knows what he's doing, just stay out of his way.

Wait another 30 minutes while he cooks up the food, usually adding some hot spices or barbeque sauce. If you're lucky he'll add some macaroni and cheese, mashed potatoes or canned green beans. And dinner is served!

I'm telling you girls, this is the best recipe ever. You should try it out!

Day 10: What's wrong with me??

I don't know what the problem is but today after I logged into my bank account and checked my account balances, I actually teared up. Watching my savings account slowly grow actually made me cry! But that's not all, I cry for pretty much any reason lately. Like.....we're out of milk. Ben on Season three of Scrubs died. I love this yarn. I hate this yarn! "Lo, How a Rose E'er Blooming?" How beautiful! OMG, I'm in my mid thirties. What do I have to show for myself? Will I look back at my life and think I've wasted all this time here in California? Will I regret it? If so, maybe I should do something now? I hate my body! I'm fat! I am having a hard time not being fat, it's all I know!

That being said, the map above shows the latest about the wildfires. The peach areas show where the fires burned in 2003 and the red is this year. Amazingly, the fire's still burn!

Losing the battle

I bought some yarn with a specific person in mind. My goal was to find something springy, not too dark nor a pastel. Though I usually stay as far away from the Socks that Rock Multicolor Wave as possible, the Watermelon Tourmaline seemed to be exactly what I was looking for. The plan of attack was to knit up the Rock and Weave socks.

When I got the pattern, I realized I was an idiot and didn't read the part on the website where it said "mediumweight." ARGH! I bought lightweight. So I made a new plan and switched to a different pattern. *sigh* I started the cuff and realized there might be a slight problem with pooling. Of course, I live most my life in denial so I kept knitting. Well. I wouldn't mind if the colors mixed thoroughly, but this stripey pooling thing that's going on? I don't think so! I even found an awesome pattern, Wollmeise Socks, but it didn't stop the pooling. The solution? I set it aside, wound up some awesome Stonewash STR and cast on Daisy Socks.


After some head scratching and blaming myself for my inability to recreate the pattern as written, I realized there were a couple different errors in it after all. Yay, not me! I fixed them and emailed the author - she confirmed there were indeed errors. I usually tell myself to trust the pattern and to just knit it. Unfortunately, this time it caused me to doubt myself and to even ask Faythe for her opinion. I don't know why I did it, I try not to. When it comes to leaving yourself open to sneering and finger stabbing, one should never ask a Malcontent for their opinion! And yes, I can feel her pointy finger stabs across the Internets. Damn you Faythe for leaving me with that childhood memory!! Anyway, this colorway reminded me why I love the Shaded Solids so much. When stretched a little, as if worn, the flowers really pop out. Loving it!

Nerd tests

Some yarn to brighten my day

I don't usually like to post pictures of yarn unless it's in a partially knitted state but I was excited about these guys I received yesterday, especially since they helped to brighten up an otherwise gloomy day. I picked out the multi-color hank specifically for a pattern that I bought at the same time. It's not normally something I would pick out but it has a specific recipient that I think will enjoy it. Well so much for saying I pay close attention to detail, the site clearly states you need mediumweight yarn and both of these are lightweight. Great! Anther excuse to buy more, I guess. :) Good thing that multi-color is growing on me!

BTW, that cat paw print was created accidentally when Simba was stamping a birthday card to Aimee. Now there are permanent prints all over this little table and a few on the dining room floor too.

Day 4: Say what?

I've just learned that more people were evacuated in SD county due to the wildfires than in New Orleans during Hurricane Katrina!

While I worked from home today, those in the office experienced intermittent internet problems. Later, a very important portion of a site went down causing our very understaffed department (I don't know why there were only two of us scheduled) to go through anxiety attacks while people across the world hurled insults at us.

Meanwhile, in an effort to establish some normalcy, I ripped out and started a new pattern using some Lorna's Laces Denim. I stole a pattern from someone else's sock so I could add some flowers to this simple sock. And if you know me, you know it's quite possible I'll be ripping these out again. I'm not easily satisifed when it comes to The Knit.

Stay tuned tomorrow for Something Red That Isn't Fire. Wee!

Day 3: Update

Since I can't stop watching the news and refreshing popular informative websites, I'm able to bring you an update on the latest developments.

Though there are many, many fire's, there's two that are causing the most destruction. The Witch Creek Fire to the north is 1% contained with no end in near and is heading straight towards the beach. The Harris Fire is down south and from what I've heard has actually entered city limits, is 5% contained and has an estimated containment date of November 4th. Yes, that's right. Today is Oct 23 but it may be another 12 days until this fire is under control or out.

In case you're wondering what all those symbols mean, here's the break down:

flames: fires that are still burning or the beginning point of larger fires.
red crosses: evacuation centers
red houses: where the majority of homes have burned
red areas: location of where fire's have burned or are still burning
yellow areas: voluntary or mandatory evacuation

Some communities are evacuated based on poor air quality or by downed fire lines. The local electric company is asking people to limit electric usage. Apparently San Diego county is linked to the rest of the Western grid by two transmission corridors. One is in the heart of the Harris fire and is out of service and the other has also sustained fire damage.

The city of Ramona is losing water pressure and it's been estimated that they'll run out before they get more. Residents are being told they need to boil all water now before consumption.

While over 500,000 people have been evacuated, there's been a strong sense of generosity and unselfishness within the community. People not affected by the fires have been donating so much to different evacuation sites that some were turned away! Of course,they were sent to other sites but can you even imagine such a thing?? I'm grateful I live in such a considerate community.

Day 2: San Diego county fires

I'm a little overwhelmed here even though the only way I'm affected by the fires is knowing my office has been evacuated. I have watched hours of news coverage and checked SignonSanDiego.com and another SD County blog obsessively while communities around me lost their homes, pets, livestock and potentially family members. I feel nauseated.

Last night just after midnight, I lay in bed having a hard time falling to sleep. Partially because I knew there were some fire's burning out of control. But mostly because I could hear a ton of traffic on the 805 a few blocks from my place. At first I wondered why that was out of the ordinary but then it hit me - there normally isn't any traffic to speak of at that time of night! I could hear all the people who were evacuating and emergency personnel as they raced to the fires. So sad.

In this map, the red blobs represent the estimated fire area's and the pink area's are estimated evacuated fire areas. The fires are 0% contained.

I'm sure we won't have any fire danger here where I live, but we still have an evacuation plan. It basically involves the cats, cat food, important papers, water and the car.

Fires...again! Or "Day 1"

San Diego County is fighting a couple large fire's which have the potential of causing more damage than the 2003 Cedar Fire. Though the fire's just sparked this morning, it's bad enough that we here a few miles from downtown San Diego are already experiencing enough smoke that it's giving the appearances of fog.

Of course, even though the fire's in east county could cause more damage than the largest fire in California history, if you check the news you'll probably see pictures or video footage of the fire in Malibu. I mean, after all, someone has died in the fire in the east county where 11 times as many acre's have been burned than in Malibu and firefighters are being treated in hospitals for fire related injuries, but rich people are losing their homes!! We've got to keep our priorities straight, right?

Almost Argyle

This pattern has turned out to be a big disappointment. It looks pretty good here but in reality, is small and I feel like I'm squeezing my foot into it. Maybe it'd be better with Socks that Rock yarn that has a slightly larger gauge. OMG!! It's like the Prius of socks! Seemed like a good idea but after you take it for a test drive you regret it. Sometimes I don't want to know how horrible something is. I'd rather live in my fantasies. And yes, I'm still bitter about the Prius.

Earl Grey

The yarn isn't quite this yellow, but it's close. You can't see the pattern but at least you can see how it goes down the side of the leg and the foot. These next images show the cable, which after I got past one of the abbreviations, wasn't that hard at all. The last is of the cable that continues down the side of the foot.

After I loaded these pictures, I realized there's a major mistake in the pattern on one of the socks. Oh well! Ha!

Yarn: Blue Moon Socks that Rock lightweight in Jade
Pattern: Earl Grey by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee

Jade socks, done!

I stayed home today and drank Pepto Bismol. Well, not even the real brand but a store brand. Anyway, thanks to the pink stuff I'm feeling a lot better. While resting up and watching Season Two of Scrubs, it was with a great sigh of relief that I finally sewed in the last end of the jade Earl Grey sock. Don't get me wrong, I love the pattern but I couldn't wait to finish them. Plus there's the matter of my having recently received my latest shipment of LL's yarn. I'm already looking for a good pattern for my next socks.

There was one thought that occurred to me during my lazy day. Remember when we were kids and we would think about "When we were grown up?" Is this it? I feel like I'm still waiting for that portion of my life to start. I guess I should be proactive and do something about it. Or not.

Second sock: the end is near!

I'm so obsessed with finishing my current pair of socks, well that and the food poisoning symptoms that keep me busy, that I've forgotten to blog! Though there have been a couple issues along the way, I'm confident and working on the gusset of the second sock. You can't see the design here but when I'm done, I'll display them so the design is hard to miss.


I like this Socks that Rock yarn but don't like how their shaded solids hide patterns. It's really too bad because otherwise it's one of my favorite fingering weight yarns. Even more annoying is that I bring it up every single time I knit a sock out of it.

Speaking of annoying, did I mention the poo on the floor in the women's bathroom this morning? It was bad enough that I used the bathroom on a different floor to get away from it. Seriously, I have never seen that in a women's bathroom. I've heard of it in men's bathrooms but have yet to witness it myself, let alone in a professional office situation. I used to know this guy that hated Wal-Mart so much he would deliberately use their bathrooms, then hang his butt over the edge and poo on the floor. Nice, huh?

Meanwhile I'm trying to decide if I should go to work tomorrow or stick it out here at home. There's something to be said about home comforts when you're not feeling well. Plus, there's definitely no poo on the floor here!

Jade Earl Grey

I started on a new pair of socks yesterday. Even though the cable is hidden by the beautiful color texture, I'm going to follow through and finish them. You don't know how much it's killing me.


I'm using Stephanie Pearl-McPhee's Earl Grey pattern. It took me a minute to figure out one of her abbreviations but now it's no problem.

Basic 2 x 2 socks

They're a bit snug for me, good thing they're going to someone with smaller feet. I used Lorna's Laces in Devon.