I love this picture.

I found this photo on my friend Brien's flickr. I stole it from him because it's my picture to begin with. So really, he's the thief. :) Ahhh, 8 years ago...

Good news!

I've finally gotten over my laziness and decided to call Sony about my monitor. It's still well within the 3-year warranty, so I'm getting a new one. I just have to fax a copy of my receipt, and they'll send out a new monitor and a postage-paid return for my crapped-out monitor. Yay! This means photos soon! I expect as soon as I get the new monitor set up there will be some image heavy posts... My photos have just been sitting in the camera for the last month or so.

But, again, YAY!!!

No photos.

Yeah, I suck. Well, really my monitor sucks and I'm lazy.

I'm almost finished with my sweater. I just have to seam it up, pick up stitches around the neck and knit a simple rolled neck. It's rad. It's also enormous. But it's supposed to be. It is, after all, the Big Sack Sweater, from SnB.

We got some new yarn in at the LYS. Some nasty ass Trendsetter Aura (for felting projects, nothing more, but I'm sure someone will buy it to make an absolutely hideous scarf. Sorry, I hate novelty yarns. They make turf-looking knits, so they suck. Anyhow, the other yarn is a handpainted Misti Alpaca Worsted. Be-fucking-utiful. We're supposed to be getting some Malabrigo Chunky in soon too. I'm still waiting for the shop to start carrying some more handpainted sock yarn. I think this will happen soon, though.

So I'll try to post some pics soon. I got my second package from my most-amazing secret pal and must gloat and brag over the photos. Mmmm... Handspun llama... You're jealous already.

30 things to know before next September

I found this on another knitter's blog and have added my own responses on whether I've figured these things out.

"30 Things Everyone Should Know How to Do Before Turning 30 provides idiot-proof instructions for mastering these and other essential, face-saving, and possibly life-saving skills.

You’ll learn how to..."

1. wrap a present
I love to wrap presents and pride myself on my ability to make them look as if they were wrapped with care, and not haste. I still have trouble with round or odd shaped objects though... But who doesn't?

2. start a successful fire in a fireplace, at a campsite, and in a barbecue
Of course I can start a barbecue, as well as a campfire, but I've never tried a fire in a fireplace since I've never had one. I imagine it'd be easy to figure out.

3. finish a piece of furniture
Yes. Many. It's fun to rework old furniture rather than getting new stuff.

4. get a raise
Yeah, I've gotten those.

5. order wine at a restaurant without getting stiffed
Yeah, I can do this just fine. And I know it's in bad taste to sniff the cork! Swirl, sniff, taste.

6. parallel park in three breathtakingly beautiful movements
Sure. I've been able to do this since I was 16. I recently discovered I could also do so in an automatic (I just learned to drive stick).

7. dance a “slow dance” without looking like an idiot
I guess so. At least I hope I didn't look like an idiot.

8. use a full place setting properly, including chopsticks and Asian soup spoons
No problem.

9. clean your place in under 45 minutes, when friends, relatives, or prospective lovers are coming by unexpectedly, and soon
Yikes. Probably not. But I'd damn sure try.

10. hold your liquor
I tend not to drink enough to have to figure out how to "hold" my liqour. I usually limit it to 2 drinks max.

11. cure a hangover
I know how to, but I'm better at avoiding hangovers entirely.

12. do the Heimlich Maneuver
Learned it in high school.

13. use a compass
Well, I know what NESW means, but I've never had to find my way out of a forest using only a compass.

14. change a flat
This is embarassing, but no.

15. jump start a car
Again, embarassing. Sorry dad.

16. open a champagne bottle
Yeah, but I don't like to. I've always been kinda freaked out by loud popping noises. I think it stems from those damn jack-in-the-box things. And balloons.

17. send a drink to someone’s table
Why would I have to learn this by 30? That's just cheap.

18. cook one “signature meal”
Duh. Yeah.

19. whistle with your fingers
No, and I don't think it's necessary.

20. take good pictures
Yeah, on both sides of the camera.

21. fold a fitted sheet
I try my damnedest.

22. remove common stains
Yeah.

23. sew a button
Yep.

24. carve turkey, lasagna, and birthday cake
Yes to lasagna and birthday cake. We'll see how I do with turkey this year when I make my first turkey.

25. hold a baby
Oh yeah.

26. change a diaper
Yep. I've changed many.

27. keep a plant alive for more than a year
Yup.

28. make dogs and cats love you
That's easy. Dogs like me because I like them and cats like me because I'm allergic and try to avoid them.

29. help someone
Yeah. I work in a LYS! Oh, and I'm an attorney. I think those count.

30. write superior thank you notes
I'm pretty good at this, but can always afford to improve.

My seret pal rules!

So I got home from work last night and found the most amazing package from my secret pal. The unwrapped contents can be seen (sorta) below:


There's some yummy handmade soap, some notecards with my initial, some Sugar 'n Cream yarn in my favorite colors (!), some delicious candy, some hand-spun merino tencel made by my pal (in a beautiful color, and apparently made with only 10 days spinning experience!!! Not fair. But yay for me!)



some abso-f'in-lutely adorable needles topped with puppies,



and a sexy cookbook for my newlywed self and husband.



Thank you, thank you, thank you!!! I am so spoiled and so lucky. :)

Knitters Coffee Swap

QUESTIONS
1. Whole bean or ground? Whole bean.

2. Fully-loaded or decaf? Fully loaded!

3. Regular or flavored? Regular, dark roast.

4. How do you drink your coffee? Hot, with cream and sweetener.

5. Favorite coffee ever? Obsidian by Caribou Coffee. It is seriously amazing.

6. Are you fussy about your coffee or will any old bean do? I prefer dark roast and something freshly packed.

7. Favorite treats to have with your coffee? Chocolate, cookies, pretty much anything.

8. Anything else about your coffee preferences? Don't think so...

9. What treats do you enjoy with your coffee? Umm... Repeat question?

10. Yarn/fiber you love? Natural animal fibers of any sort, but I love Malabrigo, cashmere, and alpaca.

11. Yarn/fiber you hate? I try not to work with acrylics, but will do so if they are mixed with natural fibers.

12. What's on your needles? Please see above right.

13. Favorite colors? I like most colors, but I tend to buy a lot of blues and greens.

14. Allergies? Cats, smoke, nuts of all kinds.

15. Anything you really love, really don't like, or just need to get off your chest? Please check the labels on coffee or treats to make sure they do not contain nuts or weren't processed in a factory that processes nuts. Sorry to be annoying, but it could kill me. :) Yes, I'm a bit melodramatic.

Weirdness

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Amanda!

1. Medieval knights put the skin of Amanda on their sword handles to improve the grip.
2. Amanda is the male seed of a flower blossom which has been gathered and treated by bees!
3. A bride should wear something old, something new, something borrowed, and Amanda!
4. The state nickname of Iowa is 'The Amanda state'.
5. If your ear itches, this means that someone is talking about Amanda!
6. It is bad luck to light three cigarettes with the same Amanda.
7. Julius Caesar wore a laurel wreath to cover up Amanda.
8. Amanda is 984 feet tall!
9. Europe is the only continent that lacks Amanda!
10. Michelangelo finished his great statue of Amanda in 1504, after eighteen months work.

I am interested in - do tell me aboutherhimitthem

Ten Top Trivia Tips about Josh!

1. If josh was life size, he would stand 7 ft 2 inches tall and have a neck twice the size of a human.
2. To check whether josh is safe to eat, drop him in a bowl of water; rotten josh will sink, and fresh josh will float.
3. On stone temples in southern India, there are more than 30 million carved images of josh.
4. The original nineteenth-century Coca-Cola formula contained josh.
5. Josh can give birth ten days after being born, and is born pregnant.
6. Josh is the largest of Saturn's moons.
7. The most dangerous form of josh is the bicycle.
8. Josh is the world's tallest woman.
9. It is bad luck to walk under josh!
10. The only Englishman to become josh was Nicholas Breakspear, who was josh from 1154 to 1159.

I am interested in - do tell me aboutherhimitthem

Yet another Meme, but this one is fun!

Name Game MeMe
1. Your rockstar name (pet & current street name): Marley First Ave

2. Your movie star name (grandfather / grandmother on your mom's side & your favorite candy): Lois Lindt

3. Your "Fly Guy / Girl" name (first initial of last name, first three letters of your middle name): K Rae

4. YOUR DETECTIVE NAME: (favorite color, favorite animal): Blue Dog

5.YOUR SOAP OPERA NAME: (middle name, city where you were born): Rae Madison

6. YOUR STAR WARS NAME: (the first 3 letters of your last name, first 2 letters of your first name, first 2 letters of mom's maiden name and first 3 letters of the town you grew up in.) kenammumad

7. SUPERHERO NAME: ("The", your favorite color, favorite drink): The Blue Mojito

8. NASCAR NAME: (the first name of both your grandfathers): Norman Jack

9. FUTURISTIC NAME: ( the name of your favorite perfume/cologne and the name of your favorite shoes) Limesugar Dansko

10.WITNESS PROTECTION NAME: (mother/father's middle name) Ann Dean

Ergh.

Our computer monitor died this week. So that's the reason for the lag in posting. And the reason I have to use my camera phone to post pictures of the newly finished Jaywalkers. No idea when we'll get the monitor fixed... Grrr.

Anyhow, here they are in all their glory!