bag 'n' trash -- home of monster yarn

Z is for ....

Zinedine Zidane!

one of the best soccer players of all time and argueably the best of his generation, this summer, during the world cup, it was all about zidane. 

his number was emblazoned on the backs of children at versailles.

and his handsome face was plastered all over parisian bus stop shelters and the walls of the metro.  (i'll take his brooding dark looks over beckham's golden boy prettiness any day).

unfortunately, his was the headbutt heard around the world.  oh well.  a sour way to end a competitition and an amazing career. 

*************************************************************************************

ta-da!!!  my first completed along!  that was fun even if i wasn't ever officially a member of the along but i'm glad i'm done.  some posts were obvious -- i knew i would finish up with zidane months ago -- others -- like xylem -- not so much.   had i not gone to france, i would have been screwed ... no quay, no vaux sur mer, no notre dame.

anyway, i hope you enjoyed going through the alphabet with me. 

 

 

Can't Call Me a Quitter

see?  this blanket?  looks simple enough, doesn't it.

i mean, it's garter stitch...  how hard can it be?

well see those bits of green and orange?  that's lion brand microspun.  and can i just tell you, AT THE RISK OF ANGERING THE LION BRAND PEOPLE, THAT MICROSPUN IS THE SPLITTIEST, MOST AWFUL YARN SHORT OF CRAZY ASS NOVELTY CRAP TO KNIT EVER!!!   every stitch, every row was torture. 

and the tangling messes that came about from the 4 different yarns didn't help either.   but the blanket is done and ready for my new niece (or nephew -- my sister in law is still holding out despite the fact that the doctor says it looks like a girl).

and the last saturday sky of the year .... look, it's snowing!

When In Doubt ...

post cat pictures....

i've had 8 days off and with only 3 left before i get back to the old grind, i'm trying to figure out how i could be so terribly behind in my blog reading. 

by the way, these pictures were taken with the new toy.   

What Did Santa Bring You?

first of all, i want to thank you all for the wonderful birthday wishes.  you really  made it a special day.  it was like opening dozens of presents all day.

so....want to know what santa brought me? the norovirus .... clearly i wasn't that good of a little girl this year.  next year, i'd rather have a piece of coal in my stocking...thanks.  (after reading the cdc report, now i'm worried that i infected everyone else.  i was compulsive about the washing of the hands and it's not like i touched any food).

but santa wasn't totally a bad-ass to me though.  maybe he felt bad because he got me a new camera ...

i'm still reading the manual.  unfortunately, even a brilliant piece of equipment like this can't make up for the fact that it's too dark to take a decent picture.

and i also got this ...

A PEANUTS INFLATABLE SNOW GLOBE!!!!!  yes, i wanted one of these and the fact that santa actually listened to me once mention how much i wanted on, makes me all warm inside.  since i didn't open it until christmas day, it probably won't make it outside this year, but i love it.  i know it's not the classiest thing, but i think it'll look very festive with the backhoe.

Y is for ....

YULE!!!

MERRY CHRISTMAS EVERYONE!!  AND BEST WISHES FOR 2007.

Happy Birthday to Me!!!!!!

yep, it's today... and look ... i'm not even maudlin...

allow me to introduce you to the little girl i once was....

the shy, coy me  .... wouldn't you be if you were photographed in your underwear ... !!

the chatty me ... on the phone with brazil or london ... (locks had to eventually be put on the phone because i used to randomly dial people all over the world -- a game i later adapted and called "drink and dial.")

the serious, world traveling me channeling melissa gilbert as "half pint"  -- this is one of my earlier passport pictures.

the child star me -- on the cusp of a career in the entertainment industry (raise your hand if you have a picture just like this one at home).

the  grumpy me  ... grumpy .... hey do you see what i see?  could it be???  were we separated at birth?

time sure goes by fast .... sigh

Bizarre Bazaar

to those of you who said i should get to the bazaar early ... i thank you.  you couldn't have been more right.

early saturday, i met up with adrian and cynthia at coolidge corner for a yummy breakfast at the coolidge corner clubhouse and a little preliminary shopping.  we stopped by the brookline booksmith to see what new knitting books they had.  HEY BROOKLINE BOOKSMITH --- GET WITH THE PROGRAM GUYS -- WAY TOO LITTLE BOOK SPACE FOR THE KNITTING BOOKS  -- just sayin'.    one new book, though, did catch my eye.  unfortunately, once you got past the gorgeous photography, what you have is another beginner knitting book with patterns like ribbed mohair throws and any of a number other projects that have been done before over and over again.  anyway.

we took our time and finally got to the bazaar by 12:20.  not 5 minutes later, they let us in.  we were shopped out an hour later and passed the line to get in that went down the block.  we all agreed that had we encountered such a line, we would have definately punted.  my criteria for shopping was this:  if i could potentially make it or had plenty at home (yarn, fiber) i didn't buy it.   yes, the self-control was amazing on my part because i did fall a little bit in love with a skein of pretty yarn.  there's was tons of great stuff though.    t-shirts, bags, bowls made out of old 45s, etc.    the creativity was inspiring.  we even got to meet shannon okey who was there signing her books.

what did i buy?  i bought some lovely lavender soaps in support of the Boston Area Rape Crisis Center. 

and some pretty vintage ornaments (see white blob reflected in the blue ball?  that's me.  the big white blog).

and this cute little porcelain tree that i got from ambrosia porcelain. 

this little russian mushroom house (you can't see the cap in this picture) with santa, mrs. claus, frosty and a tree stuffed inside, was not purchased at the biz baz (that's what the cool kids call it) but it was so cute, that it too had to come home with me (santa is about an inch tall -- look how surprised  mrs. claus is.  she could have sworn he was an inch and a half).

we ended the afternoon with some carbo-loading at bertucci's, where we stopped for rolls and beer (and salad so we could get the free rolls), and some window shopping on boylston and newbury.  it was a lot of fun.  i hope adrian and cynthia thought so to.  yes, i had my camera with me but it never once occurred to me to take a picture.  go and figure.

If I Had a Pet Rabbit I'd Name Him Stew

Thanks Rabbitch for singling me out as possibly someone who might be able to list 6 weird things about herself.  Thanks.  Nice.

“THE RULES:Each player of this game starts with the ‘6 weird things about you.’ People who get tagged need to write a blog of their own 6 weird things as well as state this rule clearly. In the end, you need to choose 6 people to be tagged and list their names. Don’t forget to leave a comment that says ‘you are tagged’ in their comments and tell them to read your blog.”

1. I didn't learn to drive until I was 38.  (so take that Rabbitch)

2. I have ESP.  Well kind of.   I don't see dead people or anything, but just in the past month, i've had fleeting, yet nagging thoughts of 2 people out of the blue who i haven't seen, talked to, or even thought of in years, only to 1. get an email from one of them announcing the birth of her son (on they day i was thinking of her) and 2. learn from a coworker that the other is the study chair of one of her studies.  sure, both these situations could be coincidences, but i encounter an awful lot of these types of coincidences.

3. I have one cankle due to a serious infection in my left foot that had me hospitalized for about a week 10 years ago.  it's the bane of my shoe loving existence. 

4. I'm much more comfortable in large groups than i am one on one.  I feel less pressure. 

5. I speak french and when i do and i hear a recording of my voice while speaking french, i don't mind it. even with  my american accent.  when i hear a recording of my voice while speaking english though, it makes me cringe. it's the same voice though.  so go figure.  but it's as if my voice were "designed" for speaking french.

6.  I always save the best for last and I love to be surprised.  So when i'm on the look out for something at the store that i really want, i look every where else but where that item will be.  so, for example, if i'm looking for a particular knitting book, i'll visit the gift area, the magazine area, the humor section, etc of the bookstore before going to the craft section.  i don't go looking for presents in the house either nor do i beg to open a present before my birthday or before christmas.  it used to drive my mother crazy when i was a kid "what? you don't want to know what i got you?" and if i accidently find out what something is ahead of time?  totally bums me out.  because you know, once it's open, the excitement is over.

ok, now i'm supposed to tag people.  but i'm not going to.  sorry.  i'm not tagging.  tag free zone here.

Creative Christmas Crafting Avoidance

so, the whole christmas decorating is woefully behind schedule.  i still have a wreath to finish (or even start), some garland to make, and paper decorations to craft.  in about a week.  i went through this last year .  all of these ideas and then nothing.  i had hoped for better this year ... see, i tend to have trouble starting projects.    what's been the excuse this time?

this.

when i saw this pattern, i knew it would be a perfect sample for the store, because we have tons of the yarn,   Filatura di Crosa 127 Print and the pattern only calls for 1 skein. 

it's a super quick pattern that does a nice job of accentuating the positives of this yarn that unfortunately tends to not look that promising on the skein.  the version for the store, i made in brown.  for some reason, the ladies in medfield go for neutrals.

the button, i had in my button stash.

then i made one for me ... in a gorgeous purple

if you have any last minute gifts to knit, i highly recommend this pattern.  and you know where to buy the yarn.

 

The Pepperoni Tree of Goodness

thursday was a crazy day ... first of all, i spent the entire day with this thing sitting in the back of my car.

i know...awesome isn't it.

why, you ask?  because it never occurred to me that this would not fit in my refridgerator.

some might call it a cheese phallice phallus ... (jesus i'm a moron).   i prefer to call it "The Pepperoni Tree of Goodness and Peace."

so those of you who didn't come out to medfield thursday night, not only did you miss stitchy, but you missed stitchy eating from the pepperoni tree of goodness ...

whoa! is that wendy trying to lick the pepperoni tree of goodness and peace?  she's so cheeky!!!

you also missed jackie modeling the lovely "granny square sweater of no shaping."

anyway, it was a great time.   plus i got to meet heather.  hi heather! 

Come See Stitchy McYarnpants!!

Just a friendly reminder...

A KITSCHY EVENING WITH STITCHY MCYARNPANTS

Thursday, December 14th  7:30 – 9:30p.m.

At The Piano Bar at Masters Touch, half a block from Graceful Stitches
Main Street & Janes Ave. Medfield 508-359-5900  [this is a change since my previous announcement}

A $20.00 donation at the door gets you a 10% discount on your next purchase at the store, (not valid on sale items), a glass of wine, a little nosh and a whole lot of laughs.
All proceeds from the evening will be donated to
a Cancer Charity of the Debbie's choice.

C'mon ... you know you want to.

Computer Says No

adrian did it...julie did it ... i did not.  what didn't i do?  i didn't make the cut.  it was a sad 15 minutes here yesterday, when i scrolled slowly down the page, noting with a surprisingly sharp sense of dread that my meathead had not been chosen to be included in larissa's book.  *sigh*  it wasn't that i was surprised that i hadn't made it.  i was surprised by how disappointed i was that i hadn't made it. 

so i did what any person would do in a time of mini-crisis, when broken, sad, demoralized...i went shopping...

the yarn diet ... SO OUT OF THE WINDOW!!!

and to prove that there was no jealousy involved ... i shopped at hello yarn.  (and if fricknits sold yarn, i'd probably have shopped there too).  i'm supportive of the winners even if i am a great big loser.

so without further ado ... i know you're all dying to see what i bought ... let me show you ...

Well, Hello there Yarn!

First of all, some Reverb Sock Yarn.  it's got that mix of acidic and jewel tones that i love.  my taste is clearly very sophisticated *snort*.
Then a skein of Hollyhock.  Because you know how i feel about the hollyhocks.

I now regret not picking up a skein of Festivus ... for the rest of us ... you know .... losers.  of which there is no more.  that'll teach me to ignore the rule of 3.

I'm considering this package a birthday present (1 more week people!!!) which in a way is an appropriate diet breaker.  i mean even on a diet, you're allowed to eat a piece of your own birthday cake ... right?

**********************************************
totally unrelated ... well maybe not because it could involve shopping ... anyone going to the Bizarre Bazaar on Saturday in Boston?  I am ...  Find me ... That is if you want to be seen with a big fat losah!!

***********************************************

and we have another december birthday ... colleen!!! come on down!!!  go check out her adorable baby pictures and if you can tell colleen and i the name of that doll (not ronald) that she's holding there, maybe there's a prize in it for you.  from me.  not from colleen.  so tell me the name of the doll either in the comments or by emailing me.  don't tell colleen.  well you can tell her, but if you don't tell me, you won't be eligible for the contest.  she's not the one having the contest.   you have until friday, december 15th, midnight to guess. 

 

Christmas Meme

A holiday meme that i first read chez girl reaction and in the pink.

1. Egg Nog or Hot Chocolate? Hmmmm.  Probably hot chocolate.  I do take a taste of ye ole nog, but it's not like i live for it.  although i have tasted egg nog ice cream.  now that's good shit.

2. Does Santa wrap presents or just set them under the tree? Wrap unless it's a big ass present like a bike or a car. 

3. Colored lights on tree/house or white? Both.  My favorite though are colored lights that blink to set rhythms.  The crazier the better.

4. Do you hang mistletoe? Nope.

5. When do you put your decorations up? Depends on the year.  I started putting them up this weekend.  When I was a kid, the tree was put up on my birthday.

6. What is your favorite holiday dish? Don't really have one.  Although my mother used to make a fabulous Buche de Noel with chocolate butter cream frosting.

7. Favorite Holiday memory as a child? Being so excited about santa coming that i could not sleep at all.  I'd toss and turn all night and then finally would crawl out of bed at 4am, wake up my brother and sit in front of the tree until 6 when we were allowed to wake up my parents.  We weren't allowed to open anything until coffee had been made and my father's flash had charged up so it was tortuous.

8 . When and how did you learn the truth about Santa? I was kind of old i think, maybe 3rd grade.  or maybe i knew but was in a state of denial until it became obvious to me when i was 8.  i recall that christmas didn't feel the same once i didn't believe in santa any more.  anyway, earlier that year, maybe in september, we had gone as a family bicycle shopping.  dad made us try on bikes.  (dad was an amateur competitive cyclist in his youth  so picking out a bicycle was serious business).  and then a couple of months later.  my mother was getting ready to go to the neighbors (which is where the wrapping happened i later found out) but she made the mistake of leaving a bag of stuff next to the sofa and i could see a blue and white bicycle basket.  on christmas a couple of days later, the basket was attached to the beautiful blue 3 speed bike that i had tried out earlier in the year, and it was from SANTA.  it probably confirmed what i already had known deep down.

9. Do you open a gift on Christmas Eve? nope.  there were no gifts under the tree until santa brought them. when i spend christmas eve with friends we do open gifts then but if it's just J and I or we're with his family, nope.

10. How do you decorate your Christmas Tree? depends on the year.  i like to have theme trees.  so one year it was all red and white with cranberry and popcorn garland and red and white ornaments.  one year it was just dozens of tiny balls all over the place.  last year it was balls and little sweaters.

11. Snow! Love it or Dread it? if i don't have to drive anywhere i love it.  when i lived in the city i loved it without reservation.

12. Can you ice skate? Are you kidding?  I'm a total clutz and can barely stand on firm ground without falling over.  so let's not even think about ice skates.

13. Do you remember your favorite gift? well the bikes.  and the little sewing machine i got when we lived in texas (so i was probably 5 or 6) and finally the camera my father picked out for me when i was in college.  it was a 35mm mamiya.  they don't make those anymore.  i still have it but unfortunately it needs to be fixed. 

14. What's your favorite thing about the holidays? everything except for the stress.

15. What is your favorite Holiday Dessert? my mother's home made buche de noel.  which she doesn't make anymore.

16. What is your favorite holiday tradition? i really like spending christmas eve and christmas day with my inlaws.  my parents weren't big "traditionalists."  especially once we got older.  but christmas at my inlaws is spent laughing.  playing games.  drinking white russians....

17. What tops your tree?  Usually a star.

18. Which do you prefer giving or receiving?  i'd be lying if i said that i didn't love receiving gifts, but i honestly don't get many anymore.  but i have to say there's nothing better than knowing that i've given someone just the right gift.  i put a lot of thought in what i give people and can spend the entire year thinking about what i think they want, picking up clues, etc. 

19. What is your favorite Christmas Song? i have tons.  "Last Christmas" by Wham.  And i'm a little embarrassed to say, I still love that one song from the early 80's ... "Do they know it's christmas?"  You know the one ...with all of the british pop artists of the time, singing about how there won't be any snow in Africa this year (is there ever any snow in africa?  well other than at the top of Mt. Kilaminjaro)?  And i love the Bing Crosby/Dave Bowie version of the Little Drummer Boy.  I remember when that song came out.  It was a huge deal because it was before rock artists actually did duets with the old guys.  And I love the soundtrack from A Charlie Brown Christmas.  And the Nat King Cole standard "A Christmas Song."  And Bruce Springsteen's version of "Santa Claus is Coming to Town."  and... ok i'll stop now.

20. Candy canes yuck or yum?  Yuck.  I don't like peppermint very much.  I just like using candy canes for decoration.

21. What's number one on your Christmas list this year?   Peace.  On every level.

Christmas Knitting

i wasn't planning on knitting any christmas gifts this year and then the twins' mother mentioned that what the girls would really like was a knit headband/hat type thingy.  i'm the aunt.  who am i to refuse my nieces. 

so i pulled out the panta pattern and made two. (there was an along earlier this year)   it's a quick knit and a great way to use up some stash.

both were made from leftover caron's simply soft in embroidery and paisley prints.

Another December Birthday ...

it's crazy how many knit bloggers are December babies.  or December babies just happen to be the kind of knit bloggers who unabashedly like to tell people when they're birthday is. 

anyway, today is cynthia's birthday.  she's a little homesick and needs a little bloggy love.

go wish her a happy birthday!

Month by Month and a Saturday Sky

Seen at Femiknit Mafia first.

Instructions -- Copy the first sentence that you posted in each month of 2006. Post it in the following format:

January
Happy New Year everyone ...

February
get your own cloud

March
so it's march.

April
am i the only one who is a little sad that march is over?

May
one last siren song for the colors of april.

June
it's june people!

July
as i type this i can hear french supporters partying in the streets.

August
i'll let you read about notre dame, because everytime i go, i'm rendered speachless speechless (and totally freakin' unable to spell).

September
roses tremieres, or hollyhocks, grow all over the place in the department of charente-maritime where my parents live. 

October
i want to thank you all for your support to my last post.

November
i've spent the past couple of weeks working on a baby blanket for my future niece or nephew (the doc says it looks like a girl, the mom says it's a boy -- tune in in January) and it has sucked.

December
first let's start with the official business here .

for a bit there i was afraid that the first sentence of each month would just be a listing of the months.  yo! it's july!  here's august.  wow, september already?  october!  uh oh, november.  december, come to me baby!

A Very Pink Birthday

no, it's not my birthday yet... but it is cathi's birthday today.  go wish her a happy birthday!!  go... go on.   shoo!

SSS Free Zone

i present to you .... my first pair of jaywalkers .... ta-daaaa!!!!!

the first sock was knit up quickly, the second sock, not so much.  but finally.  success.   am i the last person to have completed a jaywalker?  probably.  or i'm just initiating the next wave.

the yarn used:  lion brand magic stripe in regatta blue stripes, 1 skein
needle:  size 3, 40in addi turbo via the magic loop

i modified the pattern slightly by casting on 68 stitches and knitting 6 stiches between each increase and decrease.  and i shortened the leg portion because i was afraid i'd run out of yarn. 

these socks are thick and sturdy and will be great worn with my old doc marten boots.  i love the zigzaggy stripes. 

thanks grumperina for a fun pattern!

 

Flat Marble Thingy Tutorial

since showing you all my meathead, i've gotten a couple of requests on how i made my little pins.  i wish i could say that i was brilliant enough to have come up with this all by myself, but that would be a lie.  and lying is wrong.  i think there's a commandment that says so.

go to not martha's   for a brilliant list of how-tos (i didn't use these instructions, but i could have).  although the instructions are for magnets, the premise is the same.  i used a special acid-free glue that's used for bookbinding that dries clear.  it's strong enough for sticking the image to the pebble.   i bought the glue and the pebbles at the paper source, a store that i love.

where i changed things is that instead of attaching a magnet to the pebbles, i attached a brooch backing.  i think i bought these pins at joanns, they're easy enough to find at any craft store that sells jewelery making supplies.  i sewed each pin to a piece of felt cut to fit then with my trusty glue gun (i love my glue gun) i attached the piece of felt to the back of the pebble. 

easy as pie.  the hardest part of this whole project was getting the lid off of the glue jar -- it stuck -- and cutting the felt, because i don't have a decent pair of scissors for cutting fabric. 

X is for ....

Xylem

ha!  how's that for an X?  in 1985 i graduated with a B.S. in biology.  yes, a very useful degree when your grades aren't good enough to get you into medical school (fuck you organic chemistry and your little dog), but the mere thought of going back to school to study more biology is as about as tempting a prospect as getting a full body wax.   thank god i took typing in the 9th grade.  however, i did learn about xylem ... and it's friend, phloem.   and now i have an honest to good "X" post.  how many of you can say that?

xylem is made up of the cells that move water and anything dissolved in the water from the roots, up to the leaves and other parts of the plant.  phloem is made up of cells that bring food (phloem starts with the "f" sound -- for food) produced in the leaves through photosynthesis (so cool, photososynthesis, only second to protein synthesis which is my favorite synthesis ever) back down to the roots.  how xylem does this is very ingenius, but i'm not going to go into any details because this blog may be a lot of things, but what it is not is a botany blog.  (although i did  teach a botany lab  for one semester which is funny considering that i wouldn't know a plant if it bit me on the leg -- well i kind of would, since i'd guess it was a venus fly trap since it would be the plant most likely to actually bite me on the leg.  plants aren't big biters).

****************************

i may be cracking open my old text books (or probably an updated version since i'm sure some information has changed in the past 20 years, although now with the democrats in the majority in congress, evolution is back on the table -- which is cool, because i love evolution) for a little review in the next few months.  i don't know yet.  i still have to do some research, but we'll see. 

A Wasted Weekend

this weekend,  i accomplished absolutely  nothing.  i hate when that happens.    i did  "work" in the shop on saturday morning, good thing i had that because i'd really feel bad about myself.  see, the plan was to start on my christmas decorating this weekend.  well start and finish.  and i didn't even get the boxes out.  the reason other than because i'm a lazy shit?

the jaywalker.

this is my first sock that i started on thanksgiving and had no trouble finishing by that weekend (i did have to frog a bit because the leg part was too long and i was going to run out of yarn and i didn't want to have to buy more in this color -- you know the diet and everything).   the second sock on the other hand has driven crazy.  i was sure i'd be done with a pair within a week.  but of course the sock knitting gods have decided that i was way too cocky and that they'd make me suffer.  so i've had to redo the heel on the second sock twice.  and i've frogged and knitted and refrogged and knitted again, several times because i've managed to miss increases or decreases.  twice i managed to get to the toe, only to notice that the counts were off AGAIN and i had to unknit AGAIN!  so of course, i spent the whole entire weekend working on this stupid ass sock.  i hate this second sock.  hate it!

i really need a life.

Saturday Sky

and 18 more days....

A Month All About Me ...

first let's start with the official business here ... here's some eye candy for friday ...

one of the gardens at the versailles palace. 

next on the agenda -- i'd like to announce that today is the first day of my official birthday countdown.  19 more days kids.  Nineteen (or is 20.  see my birthday is the 20th.  do we count the day that the countdown begins?)

anyway, just an fyi.  i could get a little introspective and maudlin.  or i could just be a barrel of laughs and the personification of a festival of fun.  it could go either way.  in the same day. within the same 5 minutes.  just a friendly warning.  you know, it being the birthday month, christmas and the end of another year.  sheesh.

finally, my feeds are all wonky.  so it's quite possible that you aren't getting notified by bloglines or anyone for that matter that i've actually been posting.  which kind of makes me a little sad.  oh well. 

happy december 1st!  and happy friday!