Darx Unplugged

Movin' on up

2009-08-19T06:18:00.001-07:00

Not to a dee-luxe apartment in the sky (oh, that all the TV I watched in my youth was not burned so indelibly in my brain) but to a shiny new self-hosted Wordpress blog. You can find it here.

It's not all prettified yet, but I'll be working on it over the days and weeks to come. I don't know if anyone out there is reading or subscribed, but now would be an ideal time to update whatever internet thingamies necessary to keep reading or subscribing. Oh, and yes, now that you mention it, I do intend to start posting again.

As my high school English teacher Mrs. Weber used to say, "Come on over!"

Memoir triple header

2009-05-29T05:46:00.001-07:00

I have been reading like a fiend again, maybe in anticipation of expecting to have less time for pleasurable reading in the near future.

The first book, Getting a Grip by Monica Seles just caught my eye in the biography section of the new books area in our library. I don't know diddly about tennis, except that my aunts used to play and teach it (it might have been how they met?) and that one exceptional day as a child they took my brother and I to a court and tried to teach us. I was not inclined toward athleticism even then, and the best thing I remember about the day was that the Gatorade we got after trying to hit an entire basket of balls back across the net was the best thing I had ever tasted in my life. I still have a fondness for Gatorade to this day.

Anyhow, Monica's book (I feel like we're on a first-name basis after reading her story) was wonderful. Did she really write it herself? Who knows, but who cares? It was well-written, compelling and surprisingly relevant for me. Not that I have ever faced pressure as intense as that to which a world-class athlete is subjected, but her struggle with weight wa the hook for me. I'm not giving anything away, the subtitle of the book is (On My Body, My Mind, My Self), and this line from the jacket: "...it's hard to believe that spectacularly fit former tennis champion Monica Seles struggled with binge-eating and depression" pretty much give it away. I saw that and thought, huh, that sounds familiar. Not the spectacularly fit part, the other bit. So I read it. I really gained a lot from reading this book, and I would recommend it to anyone else for whom food is a favorite drug. I am glad that it sounds like she's found a purpose for her life now that she's retired from pro tennis, and it sounds like a wonderful one, at that. And I didn't see her on Dancing with the Stars, but that she was on it at all, I thought that was great. I can't even stand the anxiety of being surrounded by a simple jam circle, much less the eyes of the American television-viewing public.

The next book I read was Mornings with Barney: The True Story of an Extraordinary Beagle by Dick Wolfsie. Hilarious. A laugh-out-loud funny book about a morning newscaster from Indiana and the mischievous beagle (redundant, I know) stray who adopted him. I am a sucker for beagles, and the photo on the cover of this book was irresistable. Still, I've gotten a little quicker to ditch books that I'm not enjoying, but I picked this up on Wednesday evening and finished it Thursday morning before leaving for work. A quick read, very well-written, and so funny that I had tears streaming down my cheek more than once from laughing so hard. Want to laugh? Read this book. You will not regret it.

I stll needed more memoir, so I went back to new biographies and found Breakfast at Sally's: One Homeless Man's Inspirational Journey by Richard LeMieux. The writing was clearly only so-so from the very beginning, but I decided to give it a chance anyhow, mostly because The Professor and I had a heated debate about homelessness on our way home from a weekend away last month, and then not long after my illustrious father was spouting off on the phone to me about how the economy is tanking and the entire middle class will all be living under bridges before we know it. Uh, right. But I digress.

As a memoir, this book disappoints. Only the barest details about how his family abandoned him to his crippling depression after he went bankrupt and left him to live in his van are given, and he refers to his despair periodically, but having withheld enough of his story to help me decide whether or not I was sympathetic to his plight, it cast a rather fishy light on the situation to me, and I honestly spent too much of the book feeling suspicious of his motives for even writing the book. Memorializing the homeless people who have no voice in the mainstream world? Healing his own pain by coming to terms with his past? Just trying to make a buck? Of these possible reasons, only the last seems plausible, and well, that's not a motive that makes for a great read.

The glowing quotes from Salvation Army employees on the cover bring to mind that it's probably great PR for their organization, but still, this book left me feeling like I had been jerked around. Many of the stories he tells are quite moving, and it's hard not to be affected by the idea of a mom and her two young sons living in a storage unit, or runaway teens living in an ever-shrinking-to-development woods near a mental hospital, or two women whose so-called landlady steals their public assistance checks and locks up their shoes before leaving for work in the morning and lures homeless men with the promise of a free place to stay only to demand rent the next day after having "talked it over with her husband." But these stories are not LeMieux's, and his right to use them seems suspect to me, especially when his motive for telling them is so murky. I'm glad he's now off the street (yes, I'm ruining the book for you, but I'm not recommending it, and one rather suspects that having had a book published he's probably out of the van by now), but I don't think I'll be picking up his next book that his bio mentions he's writing. Don't bother with this one unless you've got a mad desire to read anything you can about homelessness, and even then, I'm sure you can find many better things to read first.

Happiness is...

2009-05-12T05:58:00.000-07:00

...riding your bike to work, wearing a skirt you sewed yourself, giving a friendly wave to a stranger who is out mowing his lawn, hearing when your backpack hits the pavement after falling off the pannier rack behind you so you can stop to pick it up, and still getting to work on time. Yes, I'm feeling quite righteous and wholesome today. Yes, indeed.

I biked to work yesterday, too, to cheer myself up after the itchy walk around the block. For the short time left that I have a bikeable commute and while the weather is absolutely perfect for biking, I'm going to enjoy it.

Happiness is also acing the final exam for the Mickey Mouse computer class that's part of the curriculum at Virginia Marti, without taking the class, and using software that I had never seen before, namely the 2007 versions of Word and PowerPoint, which appear to have been changed for no other reason than to confuse and frustrate long-time users of the software. The man from the school who called with my results was certainly milking the suspense for all it was worth. The tone of his voice said failure, so I was happily surprised when he said "passed," even though I left the test feeling fairly confident of a pass. Heck, I skipped to my car yesterday. That was more because I'd finally gotten a) my first text book and b) the summer schedule, but still.

After work, a weaving guild friend is coming over to help me get unstuck with the piles and piles of stuff clogging up my laundry room needing to be overdyed/dyed/have the color removed/etc. I haven't been able to use my laundry folding table in something like a year or two? It's ridiculous. I find that the more I admit I need help, the easier things get. Even if she can't help me, I'll be that much closer to getting through it all. I've got all the supplies and equipment I need, I just need the moral support and social facilitation (learned that one at Bryn Mawr, hello Psych 101). The same person recently helped me overcome an obstacle on the loom that took approximately 30 seconds to overcome when she was standing there, but which had caused me to leave the loom sitting untouched for months. Yeesh.

Tonight, we celebrate by going to see the Star Trek movie. Okay, we were going to see it anyhow, but it feels very celebratory to me. I can tell that getting good grades is going to continue to be a motivating force for me as I go back to school. It's just such a straightforward way to get an ego boost. The June Sewing Fundamentals class that I'll be taking (oh, I got in, did I forget to mention that on here?) is mainly for them to assess what kind of students we will be. Ha! Stand back, Virginia Marti College. I will be taking you by storm.

Why I don't exercise

2009-05-11T05:32:00.000-07:00

This morning, I woke up feeling happy and positive. I decided to take a little walk around the block to get the body moving. Yesterday I finally finished a skirt, the pattern for which was fit when my tummy wasn't as round as it is now, and it's not terribly flattering. I can make another skirt that is more flattering, but I also want my flat tummy back. Better get off my butt and do something about it.

So I decided to just walk around the block. It's a 1-mile walk. Just a little something to get myself going again. I haven't really done any exercise since my last attempt at walking 4 miles on the elliptical machine with no breakfast before and not enough after left me feeling wretched for a day and a half.

And it happened again. Ever since college, I've had this very annoying problem. I found out about it the hard way when I tried to go jogging with some friends. I got half a block from our dorm and started itching like mad. My legs first but eventually my whole body will itch. It is torture. I can't jog or even do a brisk walk without this all-over itching happening. When I do walk, I have to go pretty slow so I don't get itchy, which means I don't get my heart rate up, which means not the best exercise ever.

I have asked doctors about this problem, I have asked anyone I've met with any kind of sports background, and no luck on finding out what is causing it. Is it something to do with nutrition? I mean, probably, but what? What specifically do I need to eat or not eat to make it so that I can walk around the block without wanting to claw off my own skin?

It doesn't happen with rollerblading or biking, which leads me to believe that something about the impact of walking is part of the problem. It also doesn't happen when I walk on the elliptical, so that's something, but I just wish I could be outside in the fresh air to get my exercise. I could bike, but it's so much easier to walk here. I live in a somewhat non-bike-friendly suburb, alas.

I really wonder how the heck I can find out about what causes this problem and what to do to solve it. If anyone reading this has any clue what could possibly be going on, I'm all ears. Right now I'm going to go try not to scratch.

Book: Outliers

2009-04-27T10:22:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: The Story of Success

by: Malcolm Gladwell

What a fantastic book. Gladwell does it again. I love his writing and the topics he chooses. This book is one that I want to recommend to a number of people I know. Chris, Steve, Ken, Erica and Adi, all of you would dig this book. I even want my dad to read it, especially the part about the airplane crashes, because I think it might help him get over his fear of flying, although who knows, that could backfire and make it worse.

This book's most striking point to me is that one of the biggest determinants of success is just plain showing up. Do something for 10,000 hours and you'll be awesome at it. Sounds like a no-brainer, but I love that how long it takes to master something to the point of virtuosity is quantifiable. I mean, one can keep track of how close one is to 10,000 hours. It's a lot of hours, but it's not infinite. You're slogging away at some skill you're trying to master, and you think Am I there yet? Well, have you been at it for long enough? If not, just keep going, eventually you are going to get there. I like that. It appeals to me. Anyone can succeed if you just refuse to give up.

I also liked about this book the idea that a cultural legacy to behave in a certain way can be with you even if you don't know it. I'm descended on one side from Scotch-Irish Tennessee immigrant stock, and the whole chapter that dealt with how people from that kind of background, even generations back, often react in a predictable way in certain situations made a lot of sense to me. I always just thought it was my Scorpio rising and Pluto-Sun tendencies that made me the kind of person you do not want to piss off, but who knows, it could be some reptile part of my brain that was passed on in my DNA. Maybe it's both. Not that it isn't still something to work on and overcome-- I'd love to be more mellow, less irascible in certain situations-- but the idea that it's maybe not just some random personal flaw appeals to me.

Reading this book over the weekend was so timely, having learned this morning of the death of one of the world's most amazing swing dancing legends, Frankie Manning. Frankie was an outlier, a rock star in the swing dance world who achieved amazing success and the aforementioned legendary status, and a bunch of the factors that Gladwell discusses in his book might have had something to do with that. I'm a little fuzzy on Frankie's history, but I'm sure the 10,000 hour rule can be applied to his life. Opportunity in the form of living near the Savoy Ballroom at just the right age and just the right time in the history of music and dance, and then being asked to come out of retirement and teach dancing again back in the 80s. His own innate joyful attitude about life and dance that came through even to people who only met him briefly, like me, was clearly a factor in his success.

Frankie is a wonderful inspiration to so many people, and I don't know how anyone could look at the story of his life and think anything other than, Wow, I only wish I could touch so many lives for the better. Let's all try to be like Frankie, passionately returning to our dreams and our loves and using our talents to inspire others. Let's all be outliers to the point where there's no such thing anymore.

Book: The Spiral Staircase

2009-04-12T12:38:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: My Climb Out of Darkness

By: Karen Armstrong

Another memoir, this book was a hand-me-down from my stepmother. I really enjoyed it. Very hard to put down; I was disappointed when I went to pay my cable bill in person the other day and encountered no line whatsoever so I wouldn't have an excuse to get some reading done. The author documents life after leaving the convent in 1969 after 7 years as a nun. What I loved about this book was how she hit so many dead ends and just kept going until she eventually found her way to a life that fit her. This book made me think of so many people when I was reading it that I recommend it to anyone, especially anyone interested in the idea of vocation and how we find ours. I'm looking forward to reading her first memoir next, about the time during which she was a nun, and some of her other books on religion. And if only I could get my hands on the BBC video she did in the 1980s.

Going toward something good

2009-04-08T04:59:00.000-07:00

In the back of my mind I've been trying to think of a reason to exercise. The obvious health benefits just weren't motivating enough to me, too abstract, and I've never done it consistently or intensely enough to get addicted to the adrenaline or whatever happens to people who seem obsessed with working out. The reason I had been trying to use was getting rid of these new Ohio thighs that have happened to me (like I had nothing to do with it) since I stopped biking, walking and blading everywhere and started getting around in my car. Oh, and since I started eating more. I honestly never felt like I didn't eat enough before, but I think I must have been skimping, or maybe it really is just the lack of built-into-daily-life exercise that produced this change.

But coming at exercise from that angle, reduce my thighs, was just going away from something I didn't like. I knew this whole program would work better if I could go toward something I did like. Sunday it came to me. I want to go toward a flat belly. I have always been relatively thin, and my figure is pretty much proportional throughout. I loved having a nice flat tummy for most of my life, it made up for what I used to consider to be other deficits in my shape (small boobs, not very curvy/girly). I was honestly a little vain about my nice flat tummy, and well, I miss it. I'm still fairly proportional, so it's not a long way back to my former shape. At least that's what I'm telling myself, so if you know better, please refrain from bursting my little bubble. My legs work just fine; whatever happens with them, so be it, although I can't imagine they won't follow suit. So that's my new fitness motivator: flat tummy. Vain and shallow, perhaps, but if it's getting me to exercise, who cares. The loftier reasons weren't working for me. I want my nice flat tummy back. And I've done 4 miles of elliptical machine two days in a row since I had my epiphany. It's working so far.

Big News

2009-03-11T06:31:00.001-07:00

Most people probably don't know that my decision to move to Ohio from Philadelphia just over 6 years ago was confirmed by a tarot card reading. It's not something I generally trumpet about, but I do tell to people who I know and can trust not to look at me like I'm too crazy. And it's not that the entire idea came out of a reading and I just ran off and did it; I had been mulling over the idea for about a month or so before I had the reading done by my very cool friend Kelly, who is also an incredibly talented tarot card reader (psst-- Kelly, I wish I could like to a site for your tarot business). And the cards pointed to the move being a great thing in every way: financially, emotionally, spiritually. So my decision to move felt a little stronger under my feet, and I honestly haven't regretted it one bit. Yes, I miss Philly's pulse, all the friends, the great restaurants, but I'm where I belong here in Ohio even if I'm sometimes lonely for Philly. It just means I need to visit more often.

Well, I've had another idea knocking around in my head the past few weeks that I haven't discussed too openly until now, but I had another tarot reading yesterday morning, this time by the wonderful Victoria Pendragon, so I'm going public. Drumroll, please.

I'm going back to school. I recently heard from an acquaintance about the existence of Virginia Marti College of Art and Design and more specifically their Fashion Design program. The first few days after I heard about it were liking walking around with a fresh crush on someone. I was mentally sucking on the idea like a piece of candy. The only thing I could think about is how fun it would be. It's a common theme in Figuring Out What To Do with Your Life exercises to think about what would make you happy, but I had never been really able to shut off the part of my mind that is worried about paying the bills and making sound choices and whether any given course of action is going to give a good return on investment. But when I was first considering this idea, it was just, wow, what if I did this thing just because it would make me incredibly happy? Not to get rich or famous or even have a really clear idea what I'd do with the skills when I got done, but just because I've always wanted to learn this material and here's the perfect place to do it. What a concept. I finally got what every career book and counselor has been asking me to do for all these many years I've been on the hunt for my True Calling, and it just happened without me realizing it.

And then the tarot reading was so very positive. Very positive indeed. Not that going back to school is going to be a walk in the park. I'm quite sure and the cards confirmed that I've got some fine opportunities for personal growth ahead of me, but that doesn't feel like a bad thing. And The Professor is 100% behind me. I visited the school yesterday, met with the admissions rep, Betsy, who was just lovely. I have my application in hand, ready to be completed. So, now I just have to apply, but if I get in, and if I can pay for it, and where there's a will there's a way, then I'm doing it. Zoinks!

To give me a taste of what's in store, Betsy said I could check out the end-of-quarter critique for the students this Saturday morning, so I'm super excited about that, and The Professor is going to accompany me so he can get an idea of what I'm getting into as well. I've told my wonderful boss at my J-O-B, and she's also supportive, even knowing that I will probably have to reduce my hours if not vacate my seat altogether. Anyhow, fun! I couldn't be happier. I haven't had a new crush in a while, so I'm going to enjoy this feeling while it lasts.

First sign of spring and zipper practice

2009-02-25T04:28:00.000-08:00

Well, around here anyway. Remember how we planted that pea? The seed has germinated!

Let's take a closer look, shall we?

Can you see him there in the middle? I even forgot to turn the sun on for him yesterday. I think I might be enjoying this grow bulb almost as much as my little green friend here. And I think this is the first time I have grown anything myself since we stuck carrot tops in some water in Sunday school when I was 4. Hooray for new life!

In other news, I had a fun day of zipper practice last weekend. I started out with a mess of inherited 7" zippers (not the right size for the Cynthia Guffey zipper technique, she recommends using a 9" zipper):

I made 10 faux mini skirt back samples, marked tailor tacks and clipped, notched, etc. I did 7 of them, the first 3 using copies of the checklist I made from Cynthia's zipper book so that I could walk myself through the steps. When I ran out of checklists (my print cartridge croaked), I kept missing one step and kept having the same problem, so I learned something once I thought about it for a bit and realized why the steps have to happen in the right order. I also identified which steps gave me trouble and where I need to be more careful to hit it just right. A very good experience. I have 3 more to finish my practice; I'm going to do at least one of them by hand. I have also devised a way to practice waistbands, so that's my next task that I'm setting for myself. Now I just need to make myself a detailed waistband checklist. I love the checklist!

Takin' the Snap Pea Challenge

2009-02-15T10:16:00.001-08:00

I am not a fan of dirt. But I have become a loyal reader of Jenna Woginrich's blog, Cold Antler Farm, in which she recently issued a challenge, and I heard the call. Here's what I did this morning in the name of eating local and taking control of our food supply.

I got The Professor to bring me in some supplies. Compost:
Vermiculite:
Peat moss:
(Not eat moss. That would be gross).

Some rocks and a pot:

I mixed up the first 3 ingredients and got this:

I put it in the pot:

I took a seed from the pack:

Just one little seed:

I laid him on the dirt:

He's there in the middle, can you see him?

I put some more dirt on him and gave him some water:

I built him a ladder:

I installed some faux sun:

And I've welcomed him to his new little home next to me:

Here he is on Day 1.

I'll take another photo when he looks like something. Stay tuned!

And a huge thank you to Jenna, because if she hadn't issued the call, there is no way I would have spent part of my Sunday messing around with dirt on the kitchen floor.

Revelations

2009-02-15T04:24:00.000-08:00

Friday I was working on sewing myself a skirt, again, and even though I didn't finish the skirt, I did have a mess of Useful Insights that I wanted to share. I usually tend to avoid writing about something that feels so personal, your basic fear of revealing the inner self, but I've been so moved by some other people's sharing in this way that I am taking the leap and doing it. Please be gentle with me. I feel like I've made a great breakthrough figuring out what has kept me from sewing more and achieving my goal of a wardrobe of custom-tailored one-of-a-kind clothes that I made myself. Yes, that's my goal. I admit it. I am vain, and not only do I want to look fabulous, I want to reply to all those future compliments with a casual, "Thanks, I made it myself." I chalk it up to my Venus in Leo in the 10th house, but call it what you will.

I haven't talked too much about this goal because, well, did you read it? It sounds awful. It doesn't sound noble or worthy or like it will help save the planet. But you know what? It's mine. It's one of my dreams, so I'm coming out of the closet and telling the world. I want to look great in clothes I made myself. I want to be freed from the depressing shackles of ready-to-wear bullshit clothes that are made to fit heaven knows who. I want to decide the exact colors and shapes that go on my body every day: classic, well fitting and perfect for me. That's my goal, one of the most pressing ones I have these days, even more than figuring out What To Do With My Life, because whatever I do, I'm going to be so much happier doing it if I'm dressed nicely. There, now you know the truth. I feel better.

So, I am working away at this skirt on Friday, a simple A-line skirt, a real beginner project, nothing fancy. And it was No Fun At All. I was not enjoying myself. I kept going because I have a deadline, finally. This wonderful woman who is a Home Ec teacher and who I met at a draping class last fall is meeting with me first thing Monday morning, and by God, I am going to have a skirt to show her. At least most of one, my hope is total completion, as in I am wearing it over there, but I would settle for everything but the hem. The good news is, even if I don't finish it, she will hold my hand and/or crack the whip (or some combination thereof) so that I can finish it when we get together. I am so blessed to have found this generous woman.

In the midst the slow slogging away, though, my mind was churning. And I wondered, do I even like sewing? Maybe I was wrong and I don't even like it? A few years ago I took a bunch of woodworking classes, even made a little wall cabinet and a very nice end table, even bought all the fancy power tools so I could keep making more furniture (confession: I also want to live in a house filled with beautiful, handmade, custom-designed, one-of-a-kind furniture; are you sensing a theme here?). And you know what? That wall cabinet is still sitting in the basement needing to be sanded and finished. The end table is only done because The Professor finished planing and sanding and finishing it for me. Turns out what I like about woodworking is coming up with ideas, designing the exact piece to meet the exact need, with just the right size, shape and features. I'm scared witless of the table saw and want no part of using it. Sanding is just boring hard work, and I'd rather save my wrist energy for knitting or typing. Measuring and assembling, I'm down with those, but they make up so little of any project. Luckily, The Professor has taken to woodworking like a duck to water, so the investment in setting up shop hasn't gone to waste, thank heavens. I was wrong about woodworking, maybe I was wrong about sewing?

But no. I have had loads of fun sewing things that I can sew. I made this sweet little bag a while ago just on a whim, and I had a blast doing it, because it was in my comfort zone and because it didn't require me to follow instructions, just do some math, a little bit of planning and thinking and then go.

But making a garment is a different matter. There is a lot more pressure to get it right, because if I don't, it won't fit, and then it misses the entire point. But also, I don't really know what I'm doing yet. I have only sewn one truly successful garment in my life, and that was done under the close supervision of my mom. She came to Philly for the weekend and babysat me while I sewed a dress for my high-school reunion. It came out great, but with no motherly safety net, I have been scared to take a step. Because even though this nice Home Ec teacher is taking me under her wing, I just don't feel right calling her with every silly question that stops me the way I would feel okay calling my mom.

But I realized Friday it was more than that. I have been classifying sewing in my mind as fun, play. An enjoyable hobby, a self-indulgence. You know what? It's not. It's work. Me making clothes for myself is, at this point, a chore. Because I'm not just sewing for fun, I'm sewing because I need something to wear. It's been so long since I've had a comfortable pair of pants that weren't sweats. My body has changed since I moved to Ohio, and my wardrobe has yet to catch up. It's embarrassing.

And on top of that, I'm not just sewing, I'm learning to sew clothes. Learning being different from just doing, and clothes being different from any other kind of sewing. And not only that, I haven't been learning in the way that's easiest for me so far. I like to learn from a real live human, a person who can answer my questions and help me when I get stuck. I have taken excellent classes, and I have a mess of sewing books and videos, but you can't ask a video questions, and my class notes don't cover every hiccup I encounter.

So no wonder I haven't been sewing. When I am deciding what to do with my down time, I'm just not going to pick an activity that is more work, even if it's only my subconscious that perceives it as work (or perhaps especially if it's only my subconscious). If I treat sewing clothes like the chore it is, I will schedule it for when I have more energy, and it will get done. And if I honor the truth that I am still learning and that I need more support than I've been giving myself to learn this new skill, I bet it will go a lot better.

Another embarrassing truth is that when I have to do something, I just don't want to do it. A rather immature trait, I know, this chafing at authority, even when it's self-imposed, but here we are. And the fact that I refuse to buy clothes from the store because of their overall suckiness combined with not having anything left from my old life that fits means that sewing clothes is one giant have-to. No wonder I haven't been sewing.

Another helpful thought that occurred to me is that a year ago, I didn't know how to make bread. Now I can walk into the kitchen and make a double batch of whole wheat bread without even looking at the recipe. So, it took me a year, but I mastered bread making, and the other night I even tackled pizza dough. I feel more hopeful about my potential for sewing my own clothes when I think about bread. It's just going to take time and practice and patience with myself, and probably a little more outside help than I've been allowing myself. What a burden lifted to realize these things.

And actually, what a burden lifted to write out these thoughts and share them with you, dear reader. Thanks for listening. I sincerely appreciate it.

As promised

2009-01-23T06:41:00.001-08:00

Well, I said I would come back and report on what we did for the Feast of Madelyn, so here I am. In the morning I called my godmother, and it was nice to catch up on her life, hearing about her recent visit to my godbro, Jay, and his lovely wife, Andrea, seeing their lovely new house and going whale watching. I also called my Uncle Timmy, who is an adopted uncle and my mom's oldest childhood friend. Tim is always interesting to talk to, and I always learn something new. Like, I had no idea Smucker's jam was made here in Ohio, or that Wisconsin is actually more known for its swiss cheese than its cheddar. Maybe those things were obvious to everyone but me, but at least now I'm all caught up.

As or the evening, well, it was a bit of a bummer. I am so not my mother. With nothing planned and The Professor getting home unexpectedly late, I didn't manage to figure out anything that seemed worthy food-wise (ie, not leftovers). My mom could make a feast out of anything and make even the simplest meal special, but I tend to choke under meal-related pressure and wind up eating standing up at the sink or out of the pan I cooked in. I'm not proud of it, but there you go. Cooking is something I'm trying to get more into, but it's not my most favorite activity the way it was hers.

The Professor did manage to whip up some super delicious pina colada smoothies (anyone know how to get the tilde over the n?), and we're planning to have a belated Feast of Madelyn meal this weekend, perhaps even tonight. I think the best part of the day for me was reading that other people participated and celebrated the memory of my fantabulous mom. Thank you again to everyone who commented on the last post and to everyone who just did something without writing about it. I wish I could hug you all in gratitude.

Your help needed

2009-01-21T06:17:00.000-08:00

This year the date snuck up on me, and I didn't plan any sort of gathering or celebration in honor of my mom, and I didn't even realize it until I woke up at 3 am that today was what I've taken to calling the Feast of Madelyn, aka the day seven years ago that my little momelet checked out. So, in that unwelcome wakefulness, the idea came to me to ask anyone who reads this post to do me a favor and join in me in a virtual celebration wherever you are by either:

a) eating a delicious meal or

b) spending some time with a friend.

Food and friends were my mom's big things; she was always organizing parties or book clubs or golf tournaments, and just about everyone who knew her, including me, felt like she was one of their very best friends. Heck, you could just raise a glass of wine in her name, or call someone you haven't talked to in awhile, and that would be enough. Just come back here and tell me about it, to bring all the separate little actions together in one place. Let's celebrate the Feast of Madelyn all over the world. Anyone with me?

I haven't figured out what The Professor and I will do this evening in her honor. The easiest plan would be to go out for a meal, but after unexpectedly having to pay for three new tires yesterday, I think we'll be eating at home. I want to call some people today that my mother loved just to connect with them, like my godmother Joan, who is the one on the left in the photo. I'll come back and report, too.

In other news, I started exercising again today for the first time in I don't even remember how long, which felt great, and in a couple hours, the nice man from the women's shelter is coming to take away the dining room set my wonderful aunt and uncle donated to me when I moved in to the house. We've rearranged things and have a different place to eat now, and someone else who is starting over with nothing could no doubt make better use of it.

Thank you in advance to anyone who helps me mark this day. To Madelyn!

Book: Falling into Manholes

2008-12-04T06:03:00.002-08:00

Subtitle: The Memoir of a Bad/Good Girl

By: Wendy Merrill

I can't resist a memoir, especially one that reminds me of my own monk/party girl split. This book was easy to read in a day, in 15-minute intervals interspersed with doing chores. It was definitely on the depressing side, and the writing style was annoying because it felt like the author was just trying too hard to be cute and clever and show how many little plays on words she could invent for any given situation. It comes out very late in the book that her little word games are a coping mechanism, which almost makes the fact that she wrote practically an entire book of them even more depressing. I mean, I do long division in my head to cope with stress, but I wouldn't publish a book of it.

I wouldn't recommend this book unless you are a diehard memoir fan like me or have an interest in stories about recovery. One thing I would say is pick up the book if you are in the store, and look at the author's photo. She is a knockout, but as the book describes, she has major self-esteem issues. It just goes to show that it doesn't matter what you look like but how you feel about yourself. Yesterday at the dentist the assistant asked if I ever had braces or wanted them and I just said, "Who am I, Julia Roberts? I do not need perfectly straight teeth." I mean, ability to chew? Check. Let's move on to more important matters. But skip this book.

Book: How Starbucks Saved My Life

2008-12-04T05:52:00.000-08:00

Subtitle: A Son of Privilege Learns to Live Like Everyone Else

by Michael Gates Gill

A decent book. I did at one point wonder whether it was his idea to write it or one of his Starbucks supervisor's, because it reads at times like a giant ad for the corporation, interspersed with backflashes of shameless namedropping. The overall story is a good one, though, and interesting to someone like me who is fascinated by people's journeys to earn the money to buy food. I would recommend this book mainly because it is such a quick read and because the basic story, summed up adequately in the subtitle, has a good message. Money isn't everything, and the trappings of success are sometimes more of a trap.

Practice fabric

2008-11-22T06:05:00.001-08:00

Because I'm still a rookie sewer (that's one who sews not place where waste travels), I hate to use fabric that's too nice until I get better and am finally making things I will actually be able to wear. I have a not inconsiderable amount of incredibly gorgeous nice high-quality fabric waiting for me in my stash when the magic days of increased skill level arrive, purchased before I realized how far away those days are. Meanwhile, I have to work on other fabric to get better, and that's what I call practice fabric. Stuff that was acquired cheap or free where the investment is low in case I screw up, because let's face it, I probably will.

This morning something funny happened. Back in the spring, I inherited some fabric from The Professor's mother, and a couple of pieces were decent-sized lengths of what appear to be pretty nice wool. Stuff for which I would expect to pay at least $20/yard if bought new. Well, I figured that stuff would be put away to use when I get better at sewing, because it's just too precious for a new sewer to use. Not practice fabric. But when I looked for a cheap wool or wool blend at Joann's yesterday per the instructions of my home ec teacher friend, I had no luck, and a trip to the nicer fabric store yielded only some nice polyester fabrics that I was assured would behave similar to wool because of how they are woven. They were a little pricey, though, at $13/yd for one, $15/yd for the other, so they don't really help me in terms of being good practice fabric.

I made enough progress on the simple cotton skirt yesterday to know that I am going to have to start over in terms of adjusting the fit of this pattern, and since The Professor is teaching today, I have to wait to get measured before I can start that process (he's my faithful measurer). So, I'm cleaning up the sewing room, and I pick up these pieces of nice wool, just to see how much of them I have, and a receipt falls out. Turns out The Professor's mom got these at a mill closeout kind of place. And she (not me) paid $13. For both of them. In 1981. Hmmm, I think those could be practice fabric after all. I think I will still take a quick jaunt to the other local fabric store and see if they have any remnants of a wool blend out of which I might eke another practice skirt, though. Heaven knows I need plenty of practice.

More happy news

2008-11-21T07:47:00.000-08:00

Yesterday one of my dreams came true. I don't know how, but magically, I got Pandora to play via my Squeezebox (mine is an older generation version, not so sleek but just dandy). I'm currently listening to Coles Whalen radio (you might need a Pandora account for that link to work), but should my mood change, oh, the choices I have. I don't think I've mentioned before how much I love Pandora, but I love it. And now that I can listen to it through my good speakers, instead of my shitty little computer speakers? I love it even more.

The radio is keeping me company today while I (fingers crossed) finish a skirt I have been working on sewing for a couple months. Not a couple months of actual work. Very small amounts of working on it spread out, for no good reason, over a couple months. This project is one that should be able to be done in a day. Last night I called a home ec teacher I met at a draping class I took in September who generously agreed to give me some sewing coaching to confess how stuck I was and what had happened. I tripped up at the waistband stage, but the good news is, my problems are probably not because I suck but more because I didn't know enough about different kinds of interfacing and used the wrong kind. I felt so much better and wished that I hadn't waited so long to call her for advice.

During the course of the conversation she said something that I hope to be able to say myself someday. She said, "I could make a hundred wool skirts really quickly." Fantastic. I'm finishing one cotton skirt slowly, but maybe once I finish this one, I'll make another and will take less time to do it. Next up is definitely going to be wool or a wool blend, because a) that's what my home ec teacher mentor told me to use, and b) it's snowing here.

Movie: Romeo and Juliet Get Married

2008-11-20T04:37:00.000-08:00

I loved this movie. Loved it. Start to finish, it was a delight. The acting is stellar; the story is wonderful. I was cheering along like I was at a soccer match myself, and that's saying something, because I'm not what one would call a sports person. See this movie. It's subtitled, but it's so completely worth it. It's the story of Romeo and Juliet set in modern Brazil, and the star-crossed lovers are fans of rival soccer teams. What are you waiting for? Go rent this movie now. You will thank me.

Making my life easier

2008-11-18T18:03:00.001-08:00

I haven't been keeping up on my movie reviews on this blog. We don't have cable, so we watch DVDs from the library instead, and despite my success with TV Turnoff Week (man, do I ever get tired of linking to that site? No, I do not), I watch way more TV than I would like to admit. Usually it's good background noise for knitting, but also because my brain, except in cases of extreme interest in some hobby or other, refuses to do anything productive after about 7 pm, there's a lot of evening TV viewing in our house. But lots of the stuff I see isn't even worth writing up, so I just let the list fade away. Well, I am making an effort to spruce up Ye Olde Blogge here, and I'd just like to keep track for my own reference, too, so I added a little Recently Viewed list in the sidebar (over to the right there, you can't miss it) with links to the shows or movies I've watched on DVD. Enjoy! If you want more details on anything, feel free to ask, and if something especially fantastic wafts in front of my eyeballs, I'll be sure to pipe up about it.

Second harvest of the day

2008-11-15T09:51:00.000-08:00

Some potatoes, a little more broccoli and another cabbage.

He grew all this stuff from seeds people! Well, the potatoes are grown from other potatoes, but how incredibly cool is it that he took seeds and turned them into food. Are we going to live on what we can grow? Not any time soon, but it's a nice supplement to all the money we spend at the farmer's market, and if next year we can grow more, and the year after that a little more, so much the better. This soup is going to be pretty darn good.

And while I chop mountains of vegetables (carrots, leeks, jerusalem artichokes and collards done, onions, potatoes, broccoli and now cabbage to go), The Professor is outside building a pathway to our side door, taking advantage of the warm (albeit wet) weather while we can. I better get back to it, but I am just so excited about food being produced this late in the year that I couldn't contain my excitement for even a moment.

We grew carrots

2008-11-15T07:42:00.000-08:00

Well, The Professor grew them. I had nothing to do with it. But weren't these a lovely surprise to get from the garden today?

Here they are fresh from the yard:

And here they are all cleaned up and ready to be chopped up for soup:

We managed to get some food from our front yard this year. Among other things, we grew tomatoes, a couple little heads of broccoli, two wee cabbages, some peas (delish!), and a mess of rogue tomatillos that were mostly left to die on the vine because I didn't know what to do with them. So not a lot of food, but some, and I didn't do a good job of chronicling our efforts at all, mainly because they weren't our efforts but just The Professor's efforts. He didn't do such a great job of chronicling either. I have photos of some of the stuff we grew around here somewhere, and I will try to put together a post with a little more information about our first year with veggies in the front yard. For now, though, I've got soup to make.

My trip to City Hall

2008-11-14T11:14:00.001-08:00

Yesterday afternoon I chanced to read an email from Green City Blue Lake, a local non-profit promoting sustainability in Cleveland and beyond, and I found out that there was a meeting today of the Cleveland City Planning Commission to allow public input on a proposed ordinance to allow (and regulate) the keeping of small livestock within the city limits: chickens, ducks, rabbits, bees, etc. Because this issue relates so closely to our food supply, I knew I had to attend, and I am so glad that I did.

I haven't been downtown too much since I moved to the Cleveland suburbs about 5 1/2 years ago, so just getting dropped off at City Hall by The Professor was enough of a new experience. The security at City Hall is not at all intimidating: a guy looked in my bag. Feh, no big deal. My only other municipal building experience in Cleveland was at the Police Headquarters where I went to fight a parking ticket (broken meter), and they had sent me through a metal detector and my bag through an X-ray, then confiscated my knitting needles. This time I took a crochet hook, and I got a fair bit done on a little project bag during the course of the meeting.

The City Hall building was beautiful and stately, with a huge atrium and broad stairways, and I wished I'd had my camera with me to take a picture of the beautiful marble water fountain I passed. When I sat down at the meeting, I noticed that I was feeling quite jittery. I think municipal buildings make me nervous, or maybe it's being anywhere near the workings of government, I am not sure. I was glad that I had some yarn to keep me calm.

I was surprised at how many people stated their names and then copped to owning illegal chickens and bees. I suppose that as of today their flocks are probably legal (depending on the size of the flock, because the ordinance did have some restrictions), but still, yipes. Actually, I think that was what had me so jittery, now that I think about it. Even though they said many times during the meeting that these ordinances are enforced on a nuisance basis (like, they aren't driving around looking for illegal henhouses and busting the owners, carting them away in the paddywagon; if you keep chickens and you don't keep their area clean and your neighbors complain, someone comes out and... I don't know, but you get in trouble), it still freaked me out.

At the very end of the meeting, I finally screwed up my courage, with the help of the guy sitting behind me to whom I confessed my fear of speaking at the meeting and who vetted my whispered version of my input and told me "Yeah, they need to hear that." My input was simple: I just thanked them for considering more liberal legislation for livestock ownership in the City because they would be setting an example for the region and leading the way for other areas, our suburb for instance, to follow suit. Now I just need to find out who, if anyone, is leading the charge to get a similar revision to the ordinance in front of our City Planning Commission.

I voted

2008-11-04T05:10:00.000-08:00

Not that there was ever a question, but I went and cast my vote for Barack Obama for President today, and a mess of other things as well. By the time I was done, my line buddies (neighbors, that was a treat) were long gone. As I was walking to the polling place this morning, the library at the end of my street, there was already a line out the parking lot and onto the sidewalk. That line had dwindled by the time I left to being contained inside the library, but seeing it brought tears to my eyes and a lump to my throat. My stomach had butterflies that were like the cumulative effect of first day of school, first day of college, first date, driver's license test and every job interview I've ever had all rolled together, with maybe a little bit of kid-on-Christmas thrown in for good measure.

This election is the first time I've voted at my polling place on Election Day in a major race (not counting primaries and special election). In 2004 and 2006, I was volunteering to work for Election Protection all day , so I had voted early by absentee ballot. It was a new experience, and a good one. I hope the polls stay that busy all day, and that people are willing to ride out the lines to do their civic duty.

And now, we pray.

Walks

2008-10-09T17:22:00.000-07:00

Yesterday we did 1.8 miles in the morning, and this morning The Professor had to leave early, so we did 1.8 miles after he got home from work. So far we've walked every day since Sunday when we started. It's only a little bit every day, but it's something.

Movie: The Oh in Ohio

2008-10-07T13:12:00.000-07:00

Parker Posey. That really should be all I have to say. But I'll say a little more. Not only is this movie set in the town where I live, so you get a little view of our city's skyline, it's just a really cute movie. Parker Posey rocks, of course. And Paul Rudd is good, too, a solid performance. Danny DeVito, as well, quite a worthy contribution to the film. Good story, enjoyable soundtrack, a few laughs. I'd recommend this movie to anyone. It's light and funny, pleasant. And did I mention it stars Parker Posey? Really, that's all that needs to be said.

In other news, The Professor and I walked 2.5 miles yesterday morning, plus I did another 1.7 on my own. This morning we did another 2 miles. My left ankle is a little grouchy about it, and the weird histamine reaction I get when I do even low-impact exercise like walking (that's the one hitch to which I alluded before-- again, a topic for another post) has intruded slightly into my life, but I'm sure we'll go again tomorrow anyhow. Micromovements.

Micromovements

2008-10-05T08:05:00.000-07:00

One area of my life I've long been wanting to improve is the whole fitness/exercise thing. When I lived in Philly, every day I walked, I biked, I skated, I stood around waiting for (or riding on) the bus or subway. I walked to the grocery store, I biked to work and to social events, I took full advantage of that wonderful location right near Kelly Drive for my last few years there, skating 45 minutes (about 8 miles) most days, except when there was some %$#&@! regatta happening. I did join a gym at one point, but frankly, I hate the gym. Other people's germs and sweat, having to worry about how I look and what I wear (not that I had to, but I did), showering in public. Honestly, the public gym is pretty close to my definition of Hell. Not to mention a lot of money. The one thing I enjoyed at the gym was the aerobics class on the mini-trampoline, but not enough to keep going, especially when biking and skating, despite a small up-front investment in equipment, are pretty much free.

Since moving to Ohio, a lot of the activity that was built into just propelling myself around town and through life vanished. Moving to the suburbs and having a car have meant I've gained maybe 20 pounds or so since I moved here. Not that 10 of those I maybe kind of needed to gain-- I see photos of myself from back then and I do look a little malnourished (of course, now when I see photos of myself I think I look, shall we say, overnourished, but there must be a happy medium). I also didn't eat too well in Philly, eating tortilla chips with cheese and salsa for dinner way too often, and I didn't realize it until maybe a year or two ago when I found out that I'd been consuming way too little protein pretty much ever since I started living on my own. I'm still working on getting my diet to a healthier place, and I'm renewing efforts to get the exercise piece going, too. Yesterday The Professor and I walked around the block, which is surprisingly just over a mile. That seems pretty big for a block to me, but great, I'll take it. This morning, we walked around a few blocks, totalling up to about 3.8 miles according to Google Maps. I am glad we did.

SARK talks about micromovements in her book, A Creative Companion. The idea as I recall (the book isn't to hand just now, and I don't want to break my stride to go find it) is that by doing one tiny thing that moves you toward your goal, eventually you will get there, and tiny changes are easier to make than huge ones. Not exactly a novel concept, but I like the way she presents it. Today's micromovement was walking a few miles in the morning. I'm hoping to keep moving forward toward having more regular exercise in my day-to-day life. Walking to my J-O-B is one way I can build in more activity, so I'll try to do that at least one day this week. There's one little hitch to the walking, one obstacle as yet to be addressed, but that's a topic for another post.

Movie: Evan Almighty

2008-10-04T06:29:00.000-07:00

In the spirit of playing catch-up, one of the other movies I watched recently that I enjoyed immensely was Evan Almighty. I've been a Steve Carell fan ever since Little Miss Sunshine, which is in my top 10 favorite movies ever. So, I was predisposed to liking this movie, but even beyond his important contributions to its success-- the man is a master of comedic timing-- it was cute. Silly, sure, but it had a mildly positive message (sadly quite watered down and toothless, but it was a comedy, not a docudrama, so what can we expect?), and the interaction between Carell, Wanda Sykes and John Michael Higgins that occurs about 50 minutes into the film was priceless. It's just too bad they cast Lorelai Gilmore as his wife. No, I don't mean Lauren Graham. Apparently they cast Lorelei herself, only they took away her mini-me foil and had her tone it way down for this show. Ugh. But if she was the only down side to the movie, that's not too damning. The animals were wonderful, and the DVD extras were almost all worth watching, which is not often the case. I liked learning that the director endeavored to encourage a greener movie set by getting bikes for all the cast and crew who were willing to try alternative transportation and by donating the materials from the struck set to a local Habitat for Humanity. It's a nice step in the right direction. Anyhow, the movie is worth seeing. I'd recommend it to anyone, and if you see it and decide you hate it, just wait for the scene at the 50-minute mark before you turn it off. Trust me.

Movie: Notes on a Scandal

2008-10-04T06:22:00.001-07:00

I've been lax in my movie updates. Watched this yesterday when I couldn't figure out what else to do with myself. Judi Dench and Cate Blanchett and Bill Nighy, it's got to be good, right? Yep, it was. It wasn't exactly an up film, but it was worth seeing. Bill Nighy was especially fantastic, even though his part was relatively small. I do think he is just wonderful and was delighted to see him in it; I hadn't realized when I picked it up, what with my know as little as possible about a film before I see it ways. It was the kind of movie that would provoke some good lively debate afterward, if one wasn't watching it at home with the cat. Heck, the cat slept through most of it, anyhow. But I'd recommend this movie. No major violence. Good score. Wonderful acting. Compelling story. And if you watch it (or have seen it already) and want to come back here for some lively debate, well, come on. I'd be happy to oblige.

I'm buying a loom

2008-08-23T05:37:00.000-07:00

Now that I just sent the first payment to the amazing Dawn, I am going to be getting this baby (scroll down to the 3rd photo to see the true prize) some time in the next month or two. I am overjoyed. A dream I've had for so long of learning to weave will finally come true. I fell in L-O-V-E with the Kessenich looms at MDSW back in May, and I had a moment of temptation a few months back when Dawn was selling a 24" Kessenich. But I really wanted the 36", and now I am getting it. I could not be more thrilled. It will be quite an adventure going to get it. It's a long drive (nine and a half hours!), and I'm not sure yet how we're going to transport it, because it's not going to fit in the Prius. There may be truck rental or the purchase and attachment of a trailer hitch to one of our cars involved. I hope The Professor will be able to make the road trip with me. I've got to figure out where to put it, too. It's a pretty substantial piece of equipment. Hooray!

Audiobook: Gentlemen of the Road

2008-08-15T14:28:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: A Tale of Adventure

Written by: Michael Chabon

Read by: Andre Braugher

It took me a bit to warm up to this book, but I blame my own failure to read either the subtitle or the blurb on the back of the box for my initial lack of enthusiasm. Having no idea where the book was set or who were its characters, combined with the reading of various quotes at the beginning of the book, which are less obvious, when heard, as separate from the story, I started out with something of a handicap. I'm glad that I stuck it out, though, because the story was enjoyable, the writing was wonderfully descriptive, and even if the action was set in a very different time than the language used to tell it, the afterword by the author was worth the whole investment. The working title of the book was something other than the published title, and I'll leave it to y'all to find out for yourselves what it was. Braugher does a fine job as reader, as well. His voice is rich and comforting, and his expressiveness adds a nice layer to the story. I'll probably try to find out if he's done any other audiobooks (could he be my new Scott Brick?).

I've been a fan of Chabon's ever since The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, which I first read so long ago that I can't even remember when it was-- in college? Just after? It's one of my favorite books, and the writing is so good it's one of the few that I have read multiple times (the others being J.D. Salinger's, well, all of his stuff, John Steinbeck's Cannery Row, and Madeleine L'Engle's Ring of Endless Light). I haven't been keeping track of his more recent work, and this book inspires me to get through the backlog of titles Chabon's been cranking out since I quit paying attention, in addition to another read of The Mysteries of Pittsburgh, a perfect book for the end of summer.

I would definitely recommend this audiobook as a delightful accompaniment to any long-distance car ride. At just over 4 hours, it's the perfect length for, well, a visit from Cleveland to Pittsburgh.

(Pssst: The photo of the book is a link, too, because I finally realized I could do that.)

Book: Lasermonks

2008-08-14T15:32:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: The Business Story Nine Hundred Years in the Making

by: Sarah Caniglia and Cindy Griffith

If in my sewing life, I'm a shark who has yet to make the kill, then in my reading life, I'm Goldilocks. If Nickel and Dimed left me too hot (burning with desire to do anything possible to avoid a low-wage life), and Bait and Switch left me too cold (chilled to the core with fear for the future of regular old jobs) this latest book, another just-over-one-day read, was juuuuust right.

I learned of this book from the newsletter Winning Ways written by Barbara Winter, but I had learned of the ideas behind this book from my friend Rachel on her blog, which is what drove me to read it (that and it being available at our fabulous library). The idea of a business (in the case of an abbey of monks in Wisconsin, selling toner and more) supporting charitable works seems like a wonderful one to me, and I enjoyed reading about how the monks have grown their business with the help of the laywomen who authored this book. My only wish would be that the authors had made it a little more clear who they were and how they came to participate in the monks' project, because I kept rereading the first few pages of the book thinking, "Huh? Who is we?" To save others the confusion, two women learned of the monks' project from a news story, wanted to sell the monks their online toner business and instead wound up helping the monks grow theirs.

Lasermonks is not a very good primer for someone who actually wants to start a social enterprise, the advice they give is vague at best, but it's a nice inspiring story about a social enterprise that is thriving. It gave me some food for thought as I continue on my path of trying to find work that sustains both me and the world. Could I possibly employ a similar model? They donate all their profits to charity. Gulp, sounds daunting, but maybe it could also provide much-needed motivation to get off the dime as well as momentum to keep going. Can I get in a similar mindset with regard to customer service? Their practice is to follow the Rule of St. Benedict, which essentially says treat every guest (customer) as if he or she might actually be Jesus Christ popping in for a visit. You know, like royalty. Those who know me know that I am not quite that much of a people-pleaser, so that sounds even more challenging, but it's certainly a worthy aspiration.

I highly recommend this book to other entrepreneurs who are looking for ways to tie a business to good works (Rachel, I'm looking at you) or for anyone who, like me, might have been reading too much depressing stuff lately and needs a pick-me-up. Oh, and if you need to buy toner? For heaven's sake, check the Lasermonks out.

Book: Bait and Switch

2008-08-13T05:58:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: The (Futile) Pursuit of the American Dream

by: Barbara Ehrenreich

If Nickel and Dimed lit a fire under me to do something with my talents and energy, this book chilled me to the bone. Instead of going under cover as a wage slave, Ehrenreich investigates the world of white collar job-seekers, and it seems like the entire time she's in that world, she's standing in the middle of something that is rotting from the inside out. I have never been part of the big corporate world she tries to penetrate. When I have taken my various breaks from attempts at self-employment, my jobs have been at non-profits, academic institutions, and in the cozy (read: incestuous) world of medical publishing, hardly in the same league as giant pharmaceutical and telecommunications companies. I have always thought that I could never squeeze myself into the mold that those kinds of employers would require me to inhabit, and to hear her tell it, I've always been right. I would wither and die if I had to get a job-job in the sort of setting that she describes. Heck, I almost did wither and die at the couple jobs (non-profit and academic) that most closely tried to emulate that big corporate world, and the only thing that kept me from doing so was excessive quantities of wine. But what really made me shiver about this book is how Barbara Ehrenreich, who I hold in pretty high esteem because, well, have you read any of her books? The woman is sharp. How could she possibly fail to get a job?

I thought often of my friend Steve (Hi, Steve!) when I was reading this book, wondering what he, as a different sort of career coach than the ones Ehrenreich visits, would make of it. I also thought of my friend Loreto who turned me on to the news that a sort of sequel to Nickel and Dimed had been written in the first place, wondering whether it made him feel better or worse about his government job. And I thought of my friends who can exist in that world (Brian, Jaffa, and Beth come to mind) and wondered how on earth they do it.

This book reinforced that self-employment is the only way to go for me. Even if you're not entrepreneurially inclined, I would recommend this book just on the basis of the wry humor that Ehrenreich brings to such a depressing topic as begging for crumbs at the big corporate table. Her writing is crisp and punchy, and the topic is quite compelling to anyone who is less than 100% satisfied with his or her work life. Sadly, there seem to be a lot of us.

Book: Nickel and Dimed

2008-08-12T09:33:00.001-07:00

Subtitle: On (Not) Getting By in America

by Barbara Ehrenreich

I read this book while on hiatus from Not Buying It, which was both too boring and too depressing to carry on reading at the time. Nickel and Dimed tends toward the depressing side as well, although the writing is far superior and the social commentary vastly more concise, appropriate and compelling. Yes, Ehrenreich was also writing about an experience constructed purely to produce the fodder for a book, but let's face it, she just did a much better job. For one, thing, her jokes are funnier. I couldn't put Ehrenreich's book down and finished it in only a couple days. It was fascinating, and it made me want to get off my butt and put my nice shiny college degree to good use.

I would recommend Nickel and Dimed to anyone, especially anyone with even the slightest interest in economics or the effects of employment on class in the US. If you ever wanted to know what it's like to wait tables in a greasy spoon or clean toilets for a living, it's much easier to read this book than to go out and experience it first hand. It was certainly enough insight for me, and the entire time I was reading it, I just kept thinking how lucky and privileged I am to be able to get a better sort of job than the people in that book. Soo lucky. Thank you, stepfather, for paying for my college. Thank you Dean Tidmarsh for keeping me from dropping out. Lucky, blessed, and grateful am I.

I notice while adding links for this post that a quote by Ehrenreich praising Levine's book appears at the top of Levine's book page. Well, I'm glad she liked it. That makes one of us.

Nickel and Dimed is definitely worth a read, though. Enjoy.

Book: Not Buying It, My Year Without Shopping

2008-08-11T06:11:00.000-07:00

By: Judith Levine

Well, this title appealed to me for obvious reasons. I finished it a couple months ago but haven't logged it here because, well, it just wasn't that great. Nothing to get too excited about and hence my delay in reporting on it. In fact, the only person to whom I'd recommend it is my friend Adi, and only because the writer and her partner split their time between Brooklyn and Vermont. The writing was decent, but the book really sagged in the middle (I wound up setting it down for a couple weeks and reading something else), and on top of that, the author conducted her experiment during 2004, so the reader gets the depressing opportunity to relive that year's presidential election, which is not a plus in my opinion. My main beef with this book is that the personal account, which constitutes all the good bits, is too frequently peppered with social and political commentary on the state of the world and instead of being an insightful look at one person's experience it too often turns into a boring rant about consumerism's many evils. Blah blah blah. Like I said, I wouldn't recommend this book to anyone but Adi, and even to Adi I say, have a good back-up plan to revive yourself from potential boredom.

And for tonight's entertainment...

2008-08-09T14:04:00.001-07:00

The Professor and I are going to learn about native plants of Ohio with the Cleveland Permaculture meet-up group. Woo hoo!

Yet another project and general update time

2008-08-08T11:23:00.000-07:00

I am like a shark circling around and around but who has not yet gone in for the kill. There are still no new pants in my life, or any other finished garments, but I just ordered a kit to make a customized dress form. I need the dress form for a draping class that I signed up for on impulse. I wanted to take the class on sewing your own underwear and just figured, what the hey, that's near my birthday, I'll treat myself and do both. I'm excited. The dress form project should be interesting. I'm trying to get some others to join me in the adventure. I don't know many other sew-ers who live near me, but I have one person who might be interested, so that's something. And The Professor has graciously agreed to cover my nearly naked body in plaster cast material.

I haven't felt much like writing here lately. Nothing good to report, and I don't really feel like this blog is the place for whining about my life, so I have been laying low.

I watched a wretched movie recently. Just Friends. I will spare us all the bother and just say Don't See It. Trust me.

On the knitting front, I bought some new yarn. Linen and silk because I wanted to make something cute and summery. Still working on it. I scoured Ravelry for patterns, and finally I found one that is exactly what I was looking for (Ravelry link), but no pattern is available and the maker hasn't yet responded to my message asking for more details on when one might be for sale. Not so patiently, I wait, and meanwhile I contemplate just trying to figure out how to make it myself.

I also bought some Berroco Suede because it is one of the exact colors that was recommended as flattering by my guru, Cynthia Guffey. The color I got is called, I only just realized, Clint. What an unflattering and odd name. Clint? Seriously? Who thought of that? The pattern I planned to make was Coachella (another not-so-appetizing name), but I'm starting to think better of it. The neckline is exactly what I want, but as for the rest of the shaping, well, I don't own a racer-back bra, and this garment is not going to look good sans undergarb.

The really big news around here is that in a week from today, The Professor and I will begin our Grand Home Wiring Update Adventure. We're going to devote a full week plus a day or two to trying to get our entire home upgraded from knob-and-tube to romex. Pray for us.

Movie: House of Sand and Fog

2008-06-25T06:33:00.000-07:00

Can I just slink back here after a month of not posting anything, after three significant trips under my belt this spring/summer and no meaningful blog posts to show for any of them, with a mere movie rant? Is that an affront to the blogging world? Well, it's either that or continue radio silence over here, so movie rant it is.

I hated this movie. Hated it! God, I loathed the female lead so much from the first moment she appeared on the screen. You know how I usually don't like to give away anything about movies, in case you, Dear Reader, plan to watch them? Yeah, that rule is being suspended today. If you want to see this movie and don't want to have any of it spoiled for you, Stop Reading Now. The rest of you, read on.

So this idiot gets evicted from her house because of a supposed bureaucratic mix-up, non-payment of business tax. She swears she never had a business and doesn't owe the money. Although I think if you take money from people to clean their homes, yeah, you have a business and should be taxed, but that's just me. They didn't really get into those details. Her husband has left her (probably because she's some form of addict, alcohol, I think), and she's too depressed/lazy to open her mail and find out that her attempts to clear up the tax mistake failed. I've been mighty depressed before, but I never stopped opening official-looking mail. She deserves to be evicted because of her stupidity alone.

The police officer assigned to evict her takes pity on her and helps her move her crap into storage, and then later proceeds to start an affair with this blight on humanity, at which point we also discover that he is corrupt (framed someone for drug possession, but it's okay because the guy he framed was a wife-beater). So not only is she an idiot and a pathetic loser, she's also a homewrecker (the cop has two kids). Not only is he corrupt, he's a cheating bastard. The woman and her bent cop boyfriend now proceed to harass and bully the innocent family who has purchased her home at auction, threatening them with deportation (they are immigrants from Iran) and then locking them in their own bathroom for a night after they tried to rescue Idiot Girl from two suicide attempts. Did I mention that bent cop is also kind of racist and narrow-minded? Of course he is.

The man who spends the night held prisoner in his own bathroom comes up with a plan to make everyone happy (he gets the house so he can raise money to send his teenage son to college, Idiot and Crooked get some money to start their shitty new life of depravity), and in the course of executing it, his son is unjustly murdered by some other police officers. So he goes home, drugs his wife with an overdose of something to kill her (a mercy in my opinion), kills himself by asphyxiation (tragic), and then Idiot Girl shows up and realizes, yeah, it's really not my house any more. Oh, and Cheating Cop goes to prison, where he belongs. Hated This Movie.

Sure the innocent family isn't completely innocent. The guy isn't exactly gentle with his wife, but at least he's honest and his values are basically to make a better life for his children. Maybe the message of this movie is that nothing is black and white, that no one is either all good or all bad? I don't know what the filmmakers were trying to accomplish. I certainly didn't waste any time on any of the DVD extras.

A while ago, Scott Adams of Dilbert fame did a blog post about a new movie rating system. I would add another criteria to expand the Sadism rating to include Murder, Suicide or Violent Death. If only such a rating system existed, I could have been spared watching this piece of garbage. And while I'm amending Mr. Adams' wonderful new scheme, let me also add that all movies should come with a warning as to whether or not cancer is being used as a plot device. A C means yes, no C means no. That would be another good addition.

But back to the movie recommendation: avoid this one like the plague. Sure, Ben Kingsley gives an excellent performance, as does the actress who plays his wife, but trust me, I am saving you two hours of your life that you will not get back. Unless you want to be angry about injustice and depressed about tragic loss that could have been prevented so easily, this movie is not for you. Go do something, anything else instead.

Check it out

2008-05-25T10:34:00.000-07:00

I finally took the time to install the amazingly cool Ravelry progress bars on my blog. Look! It's right there on the right. These are all the knitting projects I haven't touched in ages. Links to more details (hyperlinked project name) are only available for Ravelry members, alas, but clicking the little photos takes you to the larger image on Flickr. I added these in preparation for a big Getting Unstuck on My Knitting Projects post. Stay tuned!

Book: The Big Turnoff

2008-05-11T09:23:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: Confessions of a TV-Addicted Mom Trying to Raise a TV-Free Kid

By Ellen Currey-Wilson

I got this one out of the new books section of the library, a delightfully sunny open spot where I know just which shelves have the memoirs on them. I figured this book was especially appropriate for TV Turn-off Week (I just had to get in one last mention, did anyone else who's reading participate this year?), and it was a quick read. It was a little bit difficult to read at times, because I recognized myself a bit in the author, and she seems like a bit of a whack-job in parts. I also was reminded in part why I don't want kids: I might be the same kind of parent, rather extreme about some things. That and all the horror stories my neighbors and others are constantly telling me about pregnancy and child-rearing. They don't mean them as horror stories, but to me they are. Losing your teeth to the calcium needs of the fetus? Being covered in someone else's vomit? Not for me.

Anyhoo, back to the book. It was decent. It might sound arrogant to say it, but often I read books and think, I could do better than that. One might not believe it from the quick posts I dash off here, but I really think I could do a better job. And maybe if I didn't watch so much TV (well, DVDs) myself, I would get around to writing a book some day, so until then I'll shut up and just say bravo to the people who do get it together to publish books. Meanwhile, it was good to read about someone else kicking the habit. I consider it TV to be of my worst vices, a shameful addiction. I want to just put the TV(s) in the attic for a few years, but it's my numb-out drug when things get too overwhelming, which is so often these days. I don't know if I would recommend the book, but I would recommend TV Turn-off Week next year. I might not even wait until next year to try it again. I got a lot of reading done (switching escape modes, I know, but one has to take it in stages sometimes, right?), and I felt happier overall. I definitely could use more of that.

Book: The All-True Travels and Adventures of Lidie Newton

2008-05-11T08:46:00.000-07:00

This book was one of the rejects on the day I picked A Dangerous Fortune, but I picked it up after finishing that one. I had gotten it on sale, I think, ages ago and then never read it. Either that or I inherited it from my mom, not sure. It was worth saving all this time, either way. I liked it. My vast ignorance of history serves me well in the genre of historical fiction, because I'm never quite sure how things turn out. Set in the 1850s in Kansas Territory, it's the fictional autobiography of a wife of an abolitionist settler. The really enjoyable part of this book was not so much the plot, which was good, too, but the voice of the narrator-heroine. It was also the perfect book to be reading as I passed through Gettysburg on my way to the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival. My Gettysburg and MDSW adventures are topics for another post, but I enjoyed visiting a similar time period in this book, just prior to the Civil War. I would recommend this book, to anyone really. It's a solid piece of fiction, exceptional writing, not quite a dandy good yarn, but with a story line that's certainly good enough to keep one entertained and interested right up to the end.

Movie: Starter for 10

2008-05-11T08:30:00.000-07:00

I am so jealous of Alice Eve and Rebecca Hall. Why can't my job description include making out with James McAvoy? Seriously, I ask you. I only got this movie out of the library because he was in it, and he's my current favorite eye candy. It was actually pretty decent as a film. It could have been a lot worse plot-wise, and I still would have liked it for the visuals alone. The plot was a tad predictable, but I didn't mind. The second best part after dear James (actually, third best, because first best was really James in the DVD extras talking in his regular enchanting Glaswegian accent) was the 80s music. Ah, it took me back. University in the 80s, or in my case late 80s-early 90s, listening to 80s music. The Cure, The Undertones (who didn't make the soundtrack, oddly), The Buzzcocks, it was all there. And in at least one case, they played the whole song. I love a good musical transition in a movie, playing a whole song while moving something significant along. Plus, another happy ending. I recommend it, especially for anyone with a fondness for 80s tunes and pretty blue eyed Scottish men.

Movie: Martian Child

2008-05-11T08:25:00.001-07:00

Watched this movie for the first time back in March on the plane on the way home from Scotland, but I had missed the first minute or two of audio fiddling around with the channel settings, so I wanted to see it again. It was nice to watch it on a screen larger than 8 inches wide, although it would have been even nicer to see in the theater because the imagery was so lush in places. John Cusack and a cute kid. I enjoyed it. Sad, maybe moving is a better word, in parts. Those abandoned child stories always get me right in the gut. But a good story, and good acting, and it was pretty, so overall I give it a thumbs up. Plus, happy ending, yay. Too few of those in the world.

Book: A Dangerous Fortune

2008-04-29T11:38:00.001-07:00

by Ken Follett

To set the scene: It's late Sunday afternoon. I've just finished reading The Big Turnoff (review still to come, but it's a memoir, still my current favorite genre), and the library has closed. One more official day of TV Turn-off Week remains. Sure, our house is full of books, but are any of them things I want to start reading Right Now?

I pull a few off the shelf. A Jane Smiley novel bought at a bargain table that's sat untouched for years. A novel my Dad loaned me (whoops, thought it had been a gift). Some astrology books. Knitting books from the library. Nothing appeals. I wish I could go to the library and get the book I want to read next, The Plug-In Drug, just to torture myself, but that adventure will have to wait. The Professor suggests another Ken Follett novel. I read a page or two, not really interested, but then...

I got sucked in. So, I started this book Sunday evening, and I finished it today. That's what not watching TV will do to a girl (it still hasn't come back on in our house). I stayed up way too late reading last night and still managed to wake up this morning at 6:30 am and be at work by 7:30 am (ugh). I enjoyed the book. The one thing I will say is that Ken Follett is much nicer than I am. His villains suffer, but they do not suffer enough for me. I want them to twist in agony for a really long time, and I want a front-row seat to watch it, but I am consistently denied. Maybe I need to start writing my own novels so that I can bring some true wrath down on a villain of my own. Maybe after he has written a novel and spent so long with the characters, he has a soft spot for even the bad guys and that's why he lets them off the hook. Maybe he has an editor who censors out the full punishment inflicted on these villains. I do not know the answer, but it frustrates me.

So, not as good as Pillars of the Earth, and frankly a tad predictable because of having read it, but a fun quick read with the usual good triumphing over evil in the end. And fiction is becoming interesting to me again in a way that it hasn't in a long time, so that's a pleasant side effect. The Plug-in Drug is waiting for me at the library now. I think I will wander down to fetch it.

Book: In Defense of Food

2008-04-28T08:16:00.000-07:00

Subtitle: An Eater's Manifesto

by Michael Pollan

This book is woefully overdue at the library, but I had to wait a while to get it, so I was willing to pay the fine for me and The Professor to read it, and since it was TV Turn-off Week last week (hmmm, have I mentioned that enough times yet?), I was especially concerned about having compelling books to fill the void left by the boob tube. I finished it Saturday, and The Professor's about half way through it. Soon, fellow library patrons, we will return it so that you can have your turn.

When I first started this book, I could only read it in small doses, because the overall message, while hopeful, is bolstered by some rather depressing facts about the industrialization of our food supply. I was pleased that Pollan referenced, albeit briefly, one of my favorite books and one that stoked my love of non-fiction, The Paradox of Plenty by Harvey Levenstein, which is brilliantly written, funny, enlightening-- all the things I look for in a book. I wish I had had Pollan's book 17 years ago when I read Levenstein's, although I don't think this new book could have been written then. What I like about Pollan's book is that it cuts through the BS about diet recommendations and says, you know what? Forget all that, we don't understand the science well enough and we might never; just make healthy choices and be done with it. And he's quite clear and simple about what those healthy choices are, which is refreshingly useful. Trying to follow nutritional recommendations has never really worked for me, but I think I can follow the simple rule to eat only food that my great-grandmother would recognize as food. That one's easy to remember.

I remember when my inner health-food nut was awoken from it's slumber by my dear friend Adi feeding me sprouted grain breads and different kinds of nut butter on our lunch break from the American Poetry Center one day. Not long after, I started taking macrobiotic cooking classes and got turned on to delicious things like Jerusalem artichokes and hato mugi (the most delicious barley in the world). I remember the first time I ate burdock and thought, How can I have not known about this delicious food before now? If only I'd had Pollan's book telling me, yeah, none of what you've been taught about nutrition is based on a solid enough foundation to put your faith in it completely, I think that would have helped me quite a bit even when I let macrobiotics slip away from me. Alas, I've had to muddle along without it, but now that I've read it, I hope to use these simple ideas to improve my diet even more.

The book is well-summarized by the seven-word description on the cover, "Eat food. Mostly plants. Not too much." I would summarize his recommendations for eaters in eight words. "Shop at the farmer's market. Plant vegetables. Cook."

Book: The Lost Ravioli Recipes of Hoboken

2008-04-26T06:29:00.000-07:00

I read about this book on someone else's blog (spoiler warning: she tells more about the books contents than I will). I have no idea how I even found and started reading that blog, but I thoroughly enjoy it. The writer, Tea, spins lovely tales, takes fantastic photos, and from what I can tell makes incredibly delicious and complicated homemade food. It's always a treat to see a post of hers pop up in my Google Reader.

Well, we all know how much I can't resist a good memoir, so when I heard about this one I went straight to my library('s web site) to check it out. Since it's TV Turn-off Week this week, I have been reading in the evenings, and I plowed through this book in only a couple days (Michael Pollan was, through no fault of his own, bumming me out). I haven't read the recipes in the back yet, but I do plan to make some homemade ravioli at some point, if for no other reason than to heal The Professor's relationship with this fine foodstuff. Apparently as a child, he was served some canned cafeteria ravioli in school, and since the rule at home was Clean Your Plate, he just sat there crying because they were so disgusting he couldn't force himself to eat them, until a kind teacher released him from ravioli jail and let him dump the vile things in the trash.

I'm planning to use mom's pasta machine (I know my limits), and heck, maybe even the KitchenAid again. Reading about food is hungry-making, though, and last night I finally couldn't stand it anymore, and we went out for dinner to a newly opened Japanese restaurant a few blocks from our house because the author mentioned gyoza as a ravioli-like item from a non-Italian cuisine. These were interesting gyoza, I think they contained either fish or chicken, not the beef I'd been expecting, but that was fine. I was all about the pasta wrapper anyhow.

About the book: I enjoyed it. Well written, compelling, and informative. I learned a lot I didn't know about ravioli and cooking traditions in general, I was drawn in by the family history aspects of the book, and I sincerely cared whether she'd achieve her goal of finding the lost recipes and recreating them successfully. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in food and culinary tradition (ahem, Kelly, Anne, Claudia). But I would caution you to plan to have some delicious meals ready to go because while you are reading, you are going to get hungry.

Bread again

2008-04-23T08:48:00.000-07:00

Okay, this development might not be as exciting to anyone else as it is to me, but I had to share. I've been continuing to make bread since my initial post about it a couple months ago. I've been using the same recipe (whole wheat version) every time because trying to get it so that I have the recipe in my head and don't need the book, which is looking pretty ratty already from always being opened to the same page and getting flour and water splashed onto it. And I've started making double batches, because The Professor loves his bread, so we go through it pretty quickly, as in two loaves in maybe 4 or 5 days? Bread does not get stale around here.

Well, one thing I've noticed is that the loaf that gets made in the one terra cotta loaf pan I have always comes out way better than the one made in the metal pan. Okay, that's nice, but I only have one terra cotta loaf pan. But wait, I do have a terra cotta pie pan. So today I made my first attempt at a braided loaf just so it would fit better in the terra cotta pie pan. Check this baby out:

Isn't she lovely? I can't wait to tear off a hunk of that bready goodness and slather it with butter. Mmmm, mmmm, guess what's for lunch today?

And the regular loaf is looking pretty yummy, too (albeit washed out from the flash).

In other news, this morning I had my first astrology lesson. I met Bill Tuma last year through the Cleveland Astrology Meetup. As far as I can tell, a successful meeting of this group has never taken place, but Bill and I managed to connect on our own (thank you, Bill, for reaching out to me), and now he's teaching me astrology. In return, I'm helping him get his online astrology business off the ground, using my sharp administrative and get-it-done skills, donchaknow. I'm having lots of fun. Our first conversation about his business was last week, and I just had so much fun brainstorming and problem-solving with him, and it was especially nice that he was very open and receptive to most of my suggestions and to the homework assignments I gave him.

If there's a way I can do more of that kind of work, I think that would make me very happy indeed, which reminds me that I need to follow up with the brilliant Steve Coxsey, with whom I shared a little of my reverie last week via the Fast Track forum, a membership site started by Valerie Young for people trying to get their own business ventures going, and others who, like me, want to find work that is going to feed our souls as well as our bellies. Steve was kind enough to email me his reactions to something I wrote there to Armelle, another member, and he's given me some thinking to do. What did I say to Armelle? Just that "I guess you have to be careful having me as an accountability buddy, because I will not rest until you are living your dream life." Hear that, Bill? That goes for you, too!

Excuse me, now I need to go eat some bread. I need to get fueled up for my bike ride to work!

Updated to provide a link to one of Bill's astrology articles online.

I rode my bike to work

2008-04-22T16:47:00.000-07:00

That is all. Oh, and it's TV Turn-Off Week. Do join me in switching off the tube this week. I've started reading Michael Pollan's In Defense of Food, currently overdue from the library. Loving it so far.

[We'll] dance to anything

2008-04-21T06:21:00.000-07:00

Anyone else remember the Dead Milkmen's Instant Club Hit? There's a little homemade video on YouTube with some bizarre and non-sensical-to-anyone-who-doesn't-know-the-maker visuals, but it does have the song, if you want to enjoy a little walk down Memory Lane with me (I'm looking at you, Chris and Dave). There are two YouTube videos, so if you want to hear the whole song, pick the one by lamers1111.

Moving right along, the reason for the title: It was quite an eclectic little dance weekend for us here. Friday night The Professor and I kicked things off by going to Viva Dance Studio for the monthly swing dance. I am embarrassed to say that Friday was my first visit to Viva, but it definitely won't be the last. Of course the marvelous Loreto and his wonderful DJ skills made for a delightful time, but my highlight was dancing with Eddie (sigh), and hey, neat, just realized he used to live in Philly. Anyhow, we had a lovely time, and I will definitely get my butt out there again next month. I even got some work done on a new crochet project in between dances.

Saturday evening we walked to a nearby church about a mile from our house for some contra dancing. Everyone was very friendly and welcoming. It was a small crowd because of a competing special event in Oberlin, but we were actually glad to dip our toes in the water of a smaller pool. It was fun, but we left on the band break because we were tired from having spent the day working in the front yard, disposing of some shrubbery.

Before:

After:

Before anyone gets all but-they-were-so-pretty on me, that's about 100 sq ft of prime real estate freed up in our south-facing front yard for growing things we can eat. Plus, at a recent lecture about landscaping we attended, there was a woman complaining about some bushes or a hedge or something in her front yard that she had disliked since she moved into her home 20 years ago but had never bothered to take down. I already endured those bushes for almost 5 years, and I did not want to be her in another 15. They were even worse when I first moved in, before I bonsai-ed them. Here, have a look:

I did rip out the ivy on Week One at the advice of the home inspector. Nothing growing on the house, a pretty sensible rule. But still, I let the pine loaf remain until I had a better plan. Now The Professor is planning a series of little keyhole garden areas, and he's even started to build a path. I'll get some good photos of that soon and share them.

But back to the dancing! Last night was the cherry on top, we got to see Anti-Flag at the Agora. It wasn't so much a dance event, but the music was great as it always is when these guys take the stage. High energy, the crowd going wild; it is always such a joy to hear them rock out. And even though I haven't been to a show since the last time they came through town and played at the House of Blues, the familiar movements of hands thrust deep in pockets, elbows locked, swaying back and forth from left foot to right, the bobbing of the head in time to the music, all came back to me with ease. Alas, The Professor was not feeling it, and he did not join in even when #2 said "Everybody jump!" or "Raise your hands in the air!" He even remained motionless for the grand finale of Drink Drank Punk. I don't know how anyone could stand still during that song; I was almost ricocheting off our little back corner (I'm old enough to know I don't belong in the mosh pit anymore). And now that I've had time to listen to their new album, I'm definitely digging many of the songs, and it was great to hear them live. I think "Good and Ready" is my favorite, with the title track following close behind. But the whole album is great. If you haven't gotten a copy yet, what are you waiting for?

We (I) did have a brief moment of concern when we found out Justin hadn't put us on the list of people who could come backstage to say hi after the show, and I was worried I wouldn't get to give him the present I'd made him, but luckily that back corner we'd staked out was right near where Justin came to greet some other people after the show, and we caught his eye and got whisked down to the basement for a little visit. It was great to see him, though, and he liked the present. This post is getting too long already, so I'll post photos and a little write-up about that project later this week.

Hope everyone else had a lovely weekend, too. I'm off this morning to visit my cousin and her new baby. I might even ride my bike, because it looks lovely out and No Impact Man depressed the hell out of me again this morning. I'm going to try to hang on to the weekend's happy dance memories a little longer, though, and I think I'll go play that Dead Milkmen song again just for kicks. "You'll dance to anything by Depeche Commode..."

Pants Progress Post Plus

2008-04-18T09:47:00.001-07:00

Before we begin our regularly scheduled program, I have a few highlights from the week. I skipped Ladies Who Launch Monday night to work on a crochet project. It's a gift, so photos and details will happen after it's gifted this weekend. I was sad to miss seeing Kim and Jennifer, but I hope to see them soon.

Tuesday was E4S, which was fantastic as always. I especially enjoyed hanging out with Victoria at the registration table and chatting with Bill about solar power. Talking to the guys from Fresh Fork was also fun (as was the small world moment earlier in the week of realizing I know someone else involved in their project).

On Wednesday, the Project From Hell was completed at the J-O-B. Happy dancing ensued. I am so glad to have that off my plate as I'd been working on it since September. I also started a new fun thing helping someone I know get his online business off the ground. We just had an initial phone chat, but I got to do what I love: cheerleading, problem-solving, and planning what to do next. Oh, and encouraging him to contact the brilliant Rachel to do his site (not sure yet whether they'll work together, but I have my fingers crossed).

Yesterday I made bread for my man. It's delish, probably the best yet. I wasn't using warm enough water before, and my yeast wasn't rising enough, so this loaf was lighter than previous ones. It's nice to get better at bread-making. I also got a massage and watched a cute movie; review to come over the weekend, but for now I can say: James McAvoy, swoon.

And now for our regularly scheduled program.

Today I finally got back into the sewing room. The Professor helped me move all the stuff up to the attic that was deleted from the room when I did the organizational fine-tuning in there a few weeks back, so no pile o' crap to trip over on the way into the room. The mending that had accumulated on the sewing table was tossed aside, the stack of muslin squares next to the machine got their edges overcast (using that spiffy new foot, which I love) so they can be safely laundered in preparation for The Great Dyeing Experiment yet to come. All is well.

I got sifted through the pattern, because I had the original pattern, the edited-in-'06 pattern (yes, I've been on this quest for a while), and the newly re-edited pattern all out. I put away the outdated versions and made myself a list of all the corrections to confirm and/or finish making to the current version. After getting the first few crossed off the list, I hit a snag. I'm going to put more detail into this post than the average reader may find interesting, and then I'm going to send a big SOS to all the sewing peeps that I know asking for help and guidance. Sewing peeps, if you are reading this, please help! Thank you in advance.

In the final meeting I had with Cynthia, she recommended on paper something that wasn't pinned into the fabric mock-up, an additional little 5/8" tuck under the butt at the outer leg seam. Kind of lack plastic surgery but using fabric-- adding shape to the garment to give shape when I wear it. The idea made perfect sense at the time, and I had this great light bulb moment of Getting It when she made that change. The instructions she gave me were to then add that length that the little wedge took out to the cutting line at the bottom of the leg. I thought I understood how to do that, and I'm realizing now, um, no.

Here's the pattern piece I'm using (blue arrows indicate the snag spot):

And here's a close-up of the area. See the slightly darker triangle where the paper is folded over itself and how the fold goes from the outer edge to that line in the middle of the pattern piece?

So I thought, okay, follow those same guidelines for figuring out where to put the extra wedge at the bottom of the leg:

But wait a minute, this result doesn't look right (green arrows indicate new cutting line):

Gah! What do I do now? Even if I taper the line all the way from the 5/8" addition to length at the outer leg seam to the unchanged bottom point of the inner leg seam, the hem is going to be a diagonal, and that can't be right. Do I just add 5/8" all the way along the bottom? I am, for the moment, stumped.

Well, now I'm going to start calling people I know (Anne, your phone will be ringing soon) and probably even emailing Cynthia, although I don't expect to hear back from her right away-- she's a busy gal! I don't understand why I get so hung up on these little things. I wish I didn't, but my sewing confidence is low. While I'm waiting to hear back on the SOS, I might try to do something easy to just get my confidence up. I've been wanting to make some flax seed eye pillows, that's about as easy as it gets, so maybe I'll go find some nice fabric scraps and try that.

Meanwhile, how can I expect to get any work done with this cuteness distracting me?

Books: World Without End and Pillars of the Earth

2008-04-14T04:07:00.000-07:00

I got almost all the way to Scotland and back with my knitting in my carry-on, but in Glasgow, coming home, they told me my knitting needles would not make it through security and that I'd have to check them. To be fair, they were kind enough to tell me so before I checked my bag, so I put them in the suitcase and pouted. I then indulged myself in buying two new books, including this one by Ken Follett, sequel to his Pillars of the Earth, which I had finished while on vacation. I actually started the first book before vacation officially started, which made for a bit of a problem, because I couldn't put the book down to do things like pack, so I packed very quickly the morning we left (but I didn't forget anything, so it was all good).

Pillars of the Earth was good, a very compelling story, a real page-turner. The Professor's entire family had been encouraging me to read it for years, and I was glad that I finally did. I liked most of the characters, except the evil villains of course, who I dutifully despised. I thought the story was well-crafted and interesting. A nice healthy serving good triumphing over evil in the end.

World Without End was equally compelling. I couldn't put it down and read it very quickly for the 1,111-page book that it was. It was a bit too similar to the original for me to enjoy it quite as much. It was much easier to know what was coming because of all the parallels, and that dampened my enthusiasm but only a little, because I still gobbled it up. It took a lot longer for good to triumph over evil in the second book, there were fewer swings of the pendulum between good guys and bad guys prevailing, and one of the main bad guys in the second book was not a guy at all but the plague. Sure, it's historically accurate, but watching everyone get killed off by a disease is much less satisfying than seeing them get their come-uppance in a more fitting manner, as they did in the first book. Still, it was good, and I recommend it to anyone looking to escape his or her life for a few days.

PSA for locals: Tree school!

2008-04-13T06:33:00.000-07:00

Next Saturday, the incredible Jen Braman, owner of Peace of Nature Landscape and Design, will be talking about trees at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes. If you want trees to thrive in your life, Jen is the woman to know. She is also smart, funny, and she has cool hair. Last year I attended a longer series of classes with her and another instructor called Homeowner's Tree Survival School, also at the Nature Center. If they ever offer that program again, I encourage everyone who can to take it. I learned a lot about trees. I haven't actually done anything to take care of the trees in our yard yet, but I am moving in that direction, and I've got way more knowledge about tree care than I ever did before. Here's the info from the Nature Center's email:

Homeowner's Guide to Magnificent Trees
Saturday, April 19, 10 to 12:30
Trees add value and beauty to your home. Learn how to plant, grow and maintain healthy trees with certified arborist Jennifer Braman, owner of Peace of Nature Landscape and Design. Class size is limited. Call (216) 321-5935 to register.

Compact: We Might Be Bagging It

2008-04-12T14:05:00.000-07:00

Today's excitement was me driving all over hell's half-acre looking for an overcast foot for my sewing machine to use on these *&$#(@% pants. I went to the always disappointing and useless Pins and Needles first, because they are the closest and I was trying to conserve miles, but when they not only didn't have what I needed (after I called ahead to see if they did and was told yes) but started ignoring me mid-assistance for another customer, I left. I decided to just drive straight to the always helpful and well-stocked and -staffed Barnes Sewing Center, even though it's considerably further away. Well, straight is a bit of a stretch. I stopped and bought a map, too, and not just for fun but because I had only a vague idea how to get where I was going from where I was. I was driving The Professor's beloved Prius, Lyra, and my handy little pocket folder full of directions, which included Barnes, was in my car, so I finally bought the map book for the area just south of where we live. It will come in handy again soon, no doubt. So that's two new things I bought today, completely flouting the Compact, feeling no guilt whatsoever.

And last week, while I'm confessing, for lack of a better word, I bought Anti-Flag's new CD, The Bright Lights of America. I haven't listened to it yet, because I've been engrossed in a book (Ken Follet's World Without End, which I finished this morning, thank heavens), but we had to buy it to earn Anne's undying gratitude and do our part to help with first week sales figures, although I think we missed helping by a day (at least our hearts were in the right place).

In positive Compact-ish news, I took a glass food storage container with me to the bakery yesterday and got them to put the sandwich I bought in that instead of a plastic clam shell that they usually use (I've asked for my sandwich in a paper bag in the past, but it hasn't gone well).

Now I can overcast the raw edges on the seam allowances of the pants that will not be trimmed. It's not a necessity, but Cynthia Guffey does it, and by Jove, if Cynthia does it, so will I. The last two of her videos that I bought at the Expo came in the mail today. Sweet.

But yeah, it's looking like the Compact experiment might be coming to a close. I'm not willing to forego a necessary supply like a sewing machine foot when I need one, or a friend's band's CD when it comes out, or to resist buying yarn when I'm on vacation in Scotland. I don't think we'll entirely stop considering how we can avoid purchasing things, but I don't think I'm going to keep promising myself I definitely won't purchase anything, because it's just not working out. We might have cut our consumption as far as we're willing to go already. No final decision reached yet, but that's the update for now.

Now, to sew!

I feel better now

2008-04-08T14:35:00.000-07:00

Good things:

Taxes are complete, and I only owe a small amount to the state. I get some chump change back from the city, and the Feds owe me, but I'm just letting them keep it until next year. All my Roth contribution stuff got straightened out, no penalties, so I'm on track with contributing for 2007 and 2008. Yay. The returns will go in the mail tomorrow. No tears, no gnashing of teeth. It's a welcome change. I finally found a good accountant if anyone needs one.

I found out last night that my dear wonderful friend Marty will be visiting us some time this fall. Halle-freakin'-lujah. Marty left Philly for Seattle not long after I came here to Ohio, and I've missed him terribly. I can't wait for his visit, which I hope will coincide with a good dance event (Bohemian if we're lucky?), because I love to dance with my Marty. He's super fun. I am eternally grateful to him for teaching his special secret balboa move to Andy. Don't ask Andy to show it to you, because he only got to learn it for my benefit. It still makes me smile every time.

It's warm out. Didn't even need my coat today. The crocuses are up, the leaves of lilies and daffodils are starting to come up. There have even been blue skies and sun recently. Wonderful gifts after such a long grey winter. The Professor spent a chunk of time last weekend planting seeds in cups and putting them in the window. We might have some home-grown vegetables this year if all goes well. That will be awesome.

A big project at the J-O-B is finally getting tackled, and the end is in sight. I love crossing things off my list. I'm committed to working extra hours until its complete. Look for a happy dance soon.

I'm getting a massage on Friday. My right ITB has been sore for months. It will be nice to get some relief, even if it's only temporary.

That's about it. Happy things. I needed some.

I'm sad

2008-04-05T03:55:00.001-07:00

I got news this morning by email that last week a guy I knew from swing dancing killed himself. A funny, sweet, kind, awesome guy. A good person, a good dancer, a good soul. I hadn't talked to him in years, since I moved away from the city where I knew him, and since I quit traveling to dance events where I might have run into him. What a sucky, shitty, fucked-up way to start a Saturday. I've been having enough trouble this week coming to terms with the loss of a freakin' TV character in a show I've been watching on DVD, and now this news. Ugh. Rest in peace, my friend. I'll remember your fantastic sense of humor (quick dry wit, my favorite kind), your welcoming presence when I was a new dancer, your kind face. I didn't know you were so sad that you had to go this way, and I'm sorry for that. I would have done anything I could to let you know the world needs all the good people like you it can get.

Personal best and signs of spring

2008-04-04T07:20:00.000-07:00

Today marks a record-setting event for me. In a few short hours, once I receive one last piece of information, I will have gotten everything to the accountant for my taxes before April 15th. I don't think I've accomplished that feat in maybe 10 years or so. It's been Extension-land for me for a long time. It helps having an accountant who gives you a deadline of early March, and if you don't get stuff in by then, you're fired. I was more prepared this year than ever before, having started to keep a simple pocket file on the shelf by my desk for anything tax related. As it came into my life, I just put it in the folder, and then when my early March deadline rolled around, it was mostly all there. Not everything made it into the folder, but a lot did. This year I'll do an even better job, and 2008 will be even less stressful. Progress is nice.

In other news, yesterday on my way to the J-O-B, I saw a little bird fall off an electric wire overhead into the street and then flap around on the pavement in the middle of the street for a couple minutes. I had stopped my car to figure out if there was anything I could do, and was trying to find something in my car to use to sort of shovel the poor guy to the side of the road so he wouldn't get hit in case he recovered from his fall. I didn't want my human scent on him in case it would make the other birds back at the nest kick his ass or something, but I didn't really have anything appropriate in the car. Anyhow, I finally got out of the car empty-handed just to see what the precise problem was (broken wing? hurt foot?), only to find out it was, in fact, two birds... getting it on. Luckily, upon my approach, they decided to move their assignation to the treelawn, and I got back in the car and continued on my way. Ah, spring!

The pants project was postponed (say that 3 times fast) last weekend, having been bumped so I could do the fine-tuning of the organization of the sewing room, which looks fantastic now, almost ready for some showing-off pictures. Everything is all labeled and accessible and stored logically. The pants will be much easier to accomplish now for having taken the time to set the stage. Stay tuned for photos and, I hope, bragging about how great they turned out.

Victory is (almost) mine!

2008-03-30T06:58:00.000-07:00

I thoroughly enjoyed the past 4 days at the Cleveland Sewing and Quilting Expo. I only took classes with Cynthia Guffey, so I can't give a review of the overall array of classes, but Cynthia's were, as always, incredibly informative and valuable, and I'm so glad I attended them all. I especially enjoyed her classes on collars (how to edit collar patterns to make collars fit better), necklines (how to choose flattering ones for your face and how to invent new ones), bound pockets and buttonholes (I can't wait to practice making more of these, they look fantastic and her method makes getting a fantastic result simple enough for even a novice like me), and of course, pants fitting. The event organizers also made some changes to the layout of the vendors and registration areas this year, including getting a new (nicer) entrance, which were vast improvements in my opinion. If you have any interest in sewing or quilting and can attend this show next year, I highly recommend it.

When we last left our heroine, she was working furiously to complete her mock-up in time for last Wednesday's class. At around 8 am on class day, I got it close enough (zipper in and a rough estimate of the waistband attached at waist at least, but without the waistband facing turned under and whipped in), leaving me time to shower and dress, pack food and drive to the I-X Center, arriving at class only 15 minutes late. But I don't think I missed too much, and when I got there, imagine my surprise to discover that a full sheet of instructions on how to complete the mock-up, including the important line "Email Cynthia with any questions" had been accidentally omitted from my registration packet. Wow, would the process of making this thing have been soooo much easier if only I'd had those instructions. It had occurred to me around 5 pm on Tuesday that maybe some such error had occurred, but at that point, I figured it was too late to call them and find out, so I just muddled through. I did learn my lesson, though, and next time something looks wrong to me, which the mere supply list did look insufficient as far as the promised "detailed instructions for preparing your mock-up" when I originally got it, I will definitely call and ask.

I didn't get photos of my mock-up before Cynthia fitted me, but here are some photos of it after 3 passes at tweaking the mock-up.

Rear view:

Front view:

Rear close-up (aka, how cute my butt is going to look in these pants):

Only the left leg got all the final tweaks, and it's interesting to me to see how much of a difference those little changes make. The tweaks have been transferred to the pattern, and that T-shaped adjustment that you can sort of see if you click on the butt close-up (see that dotted horizontal line?) was particularly hairy to make on paper, but Cynthia showed me how to do it, so that was good. She even recommended an additional nip in below the butt when we were fooling with the paper pattern piece, so we'll see if that works or if I need to back off from it a bit. The little bump on the side hip is just a result of the adjustments I had to make to the crotch depth and will disappear in the next mock-up. I will definitely post more photos when the 2nd mock-up is done.

Now that I've got the green light from Cynthia that I am done tweaking and can make another mock-up, I'm going back up to my lovely sewing room today to tidy up and get back to work. I want to keep my momentum going this year. The Professor (who kindly donated his photography services to this morning's post) is down in the basement making maple legs for the nightstands for our room. Another nice DIY day here at the old homestead.

Oh, and I would also like to mention that I did not buy any more fabric or yarn at the show. I was only a little bit tempted and then only once, by some lovely rust-colored wool coating for 25% off, but it's from a local store, Cutting Room Fabrics, which I thought had closed but only moved, so I just decided that by the time I'm experienced enough to make a coat, they'll have something else equally pretty for me to get. I did choose to break the Compact and get some of Cynthia's videos, mainly because there is no way I could buy them 2nd hand, nor would I want to do so. Cynthia deserves to get every penny for her genius. I did also get some scissors that she recommended. I could rationalize them as art supplies, but honestly, when it comes to sewing, I just do what Cynthia tells me, and if she says these scissors will make my sewing go better, I believe her. I hope to back on the Compact straight and narrow now that March's temptations of Scotland and the Sewing Expo are behind me.

Down to the wire

2008-03-24T06:10:00.000-07:00

Wednesday is the first day of classes at the Sewing Expo, and I'm signed up for a pants class with Cynthia Guffey. It said on the class description that this class is at the experienced level, which I am decidedly not, but I signed up anyhow, because damnit, I've been wanting to get some pants made for about 4 years, and it's finally going to happen. But now, I have to make a mock-up pair of pants in advance of class, which means I have today and tomorrow, which should be plenty of time but still doesn't feel like enough.

My guess is that at class Cynthia is going to spend time fitting people, and showing them how to alter their patterns based on the changes made to the mockup. Since she's already fitted me for pants when I went to the 4-day workshop with her in Louisiana, and I've altered my pattern, I should be ahead of the game (if it still fits, I have to try the muslin on and pray). But I am terrified, people. I have to go up into my sewing room, in which I spent a bunch of time last week sorting through my fabric stash and getting it a little more efficiently and logically stored, and I have to start with a couple yards of fabric and the pattern and produce pants. I have some sewing skill, but it's minimal, and the only really successful garment I've ever made (a princess seam dress for my 11-year high school reunion) was produced under the watchful eye of my mom. So, please send up a good luck prayer or thought for me today if you read this post. I promise to post photos of my pants if, no when I get them done.

Yarn noir

2008-03-20T16:45:00.000-07:00

I am still working on putting together a Scotland recap, but meanwhile let me confess that while on vacation, we shelved both the Compact and the No New Yarn in '08 policy. I took these photos in the lovely morning sun, but for some reason they came out quite dark, and my photo tweaking skills are non-existent, so this is what I've got for pictures.

The first thing to catch my eye was this:

Followed closely by:

I got these in case my lovely hostess Rachel and I got around to doing any KoolAid dyeing while I was visiting (we didn't). They all smell and feel like they might have a bit of silk in them, but I neglected to ask.

This one was just pretty. I think it will make a nice gift for someone.

And then since I had already sinned, as it were, I went ahead and got this:

and this:

The first being a worsted weight that is squishy and soft and the latter being DK and a little scratchier. These are made with yarn from special North Ronaldsay sheep, which only eat seaweed for a good part of the year. How could I pass it up?

I love E4S

2008-03-19T05:32:00.000-07:00

Last night I went to the monthly meeting of Entrepreneurs for Sustainability. I love this group. I always learn something new, meet someone interesting, and get inspired about all the great things going on in our region. Last night's highlight was talking to a gentleman who recycles flourescent lightbulbs. For a quarter, he took my used headlight bulb that the Honda dealership had generously offered to put in the garbage for me, and instead of going into landfill, it will be recycled (the harvested materials are worth less than cost to dismantle them, hence the small fee). In general, he works with businesses to help them meet EPA guidelines that all lightbulbs must be recycled, so that's why it cost me a quarter. Well worth it, I say!

I also met some women who are working to get the planned green roof for the CSU recreation center finally installed. I'm hoping The Professor will jump on the bandwagon and do what he can to help their cause. He hadn't even known about the initial plans for a green roof, so I'm guessing many others at CSU don't as well. What a great image-booster for CSU if they could be one of the first in the city to implement a large-scale green roof project. Fingers crossed.

Scotland recap still to come. Stay tuned.

Scotland!

2008-03-18T05:19:00.000-07:00

If you were wondering why things were so quiet over here, it's because The Professor and I were vacationing in Orkney. Photos and details to follow soon. Now, off to get the headlight on my car fixed to make sure the warning our house-sitter got while driving my car doesn't become a full-fledged ticket. Alas, this time crunch to get it done means I am skipping the whole shop around at salvage yards experience and going straight to the dealership for a new one. No time to mess around. Bummer, I'm really going to be sad to miss out on that experience. [insert sarcasm here]

I just can't get enough

2008-03-05T07:51:00.000-08:00

Today I finally registered to attend a couple classes at Knitter's Connection in Columbus in June. I ought to have registered a week or two ago to get the early bird discount, but I just couldn't decide which class to take on Friday. I settled for a design class with Ruth Lantz in the afternoon. I have only drawn sketches of ideas, but I've never designed my own garment. I did design a couple non-garment items, but that's different, isn't it?

The whole point of going was to take a Cat Bordhi class, and I'm signed up for her Saturday class with my cool new fiber friend, Janis. The class should be interesting, and meeting Janis will be a blast. We've already established that we must have been separated at birth. I am also signed up to attend the lecture by Casey and Jess of Ravelry fame on Thursday night. I want to think of a nice present to bring them for the incredible gift they have given to all of us. Hey, I wouldn't have met Janis if it weren't for Ravelry! I think every knitter/spinner/crocheter and her mother is already on this site, but if you're not, and you like playing with fiber even a little bit, run, don't walk to sign up. It's a vast database of all things knitting/crochet-- patterns, yarns, people-- and just an incredibly well-designed site with tons of useful and fun features. Trust me, it's not just another internet time suck, although it is very addictive.

But wait, there's more. At the end of this month, I'll be hitting the Original Sewing & Quilting Expo, Cleveland Edition. I've been to this show 3 years running, maybe 4, I can't recall, but every time I go I have a great time. I've only had a friend go with me once, which was the best, but it's worth going alone, so that's what I do. I am a devout groupie of Cynthia Guffey, and I've signed up for all her classes again this year. The most exciting one will be the day-long class making pants. I might actually come home with a finished (or nearly) pair of pants and the confidence to make another. I can only hope.

And I'm still waiting to hear from another friend about whether or not we are definitely on to meet up at the Maryland Sheep and Wool Festival in early May. I want to try out a bunch of different spinning wheels to see what kind I like, so in case I ever get around to buying one, I'll know which kind I want to buy. Meanwhile, the rented wheel sits untouched in the corner in the living room, so I don't know how soon I'll buy a wheel, because clearly the spinning bug hasn't got its teeth sunk too deep into me yet.

Election Day

2008-03-04T14:45:00.001-08:00

Today's weather is awful here in Cleveland. Freezing rain, grey, cold, miserable. Ice is forming on anything and everything left outside for more than 10 minutes. I ignored PFAW's Sunday evening plea to do poll monitoring this year (we haven't been answering our phone for weeks to avoid election-related phone spam), and I'm glad I did, because it would suck to be standing out in this mess all day, and just in case I didn't get as lucky as I did the last two elections, when I worked from 5 am to midnight both times, but I got to do it (mostly) from the relative comfort of poll monitor HQ, being as how I'm such an organizing bad-ass and impressed the imported-from-DC Election Protection leaders as someone who'd make a good right-hand man for the day. This year, the disenfranchised voters of NE Ohio are going to have to muddle through without me.

I had to drive my tax return stuff over to the accountant (oh, I wish it were done, but I only had the preliminary stuff to take him), so I stopped and voted on the way home. The pollworkers were cheerful and humorous, always a plus. We had paper ballots, which was the one other bright spot in the whole experience, because I have a lot more confidence in them than the computers. I could have voted my conscience and cast my ballot for Kucinich, but knowing it would count for nothing since he stepped down, I hesitated. I wished I'd brought my pendulum so I could dowse for the answer, but I didn't think of that in my rush to get the tax stuff delivered. So I used the old faithful decision-making technique we all learned as kids. I did eenie-meanie-meinie-mo on Edwards, Kucinich and Obama, and Obama won, the last survivor of the two knockout rounds: my mother said to pick the very best one and you are not it.

Haircut

2008-02-23T12:27:00.000-08:00

What do you think?

I don't like it.

I am going back Wednesday night to get it fixed. I'm torn, because fixing = going shorter, which is what I really wanted in the first place (I let myself be led astray with this half-way shorter version), and if I don't like that, then it's that much longer until it grows out. Maybe I should just leave it alone and go back to longer? I just don't feel cute the way it is now, and it's important to at least feel cute.

I don't blame Mary. She's fabulous. It was a communication issue. Plus, we were only our 2nd date, how could I expect her to know what I wanted? I miss Liz.

Movie: Batman Begins

2008-02-18T07:00:00.001-08:00

It occurs to me that some people might be wondering to themselves, Why is this woman posting about movies that are so old and out of date? Good question. This section of the blog posts grew out of the profile I had on the alumnae forum for my alma mater, where it asks you to describe books and movies that you like, in order for others to judge whether they might form an affinity with you, I suppose. I consume too many books and movies to keep a little profile thingy like that up to date in any meaningful way, so I started using the journal function of that profile to track movies and books, and when I started the blog I moved that over here. I also figure that I'm not the only one who doesn't get to the theaters to see every new movie and is often casting about for what to bring home from the library/video store. So, for anyone scratching their heads over this mystery, there you go.

Saturday night I had tried to gather some people together to try out contra dancing (I have an acquaintance who goes and it sounds like fun), but alas, I was unsuccessful. I must confess that I didn't try that hard, just sent a mass email the day before. Next time I'll have to get on the horn and do a better job selling the idea. The one taker wound up with a headache, so we just gave it a miss, stayed home, ate delicious homemade bread with delicious homemade soup and watched a video. The Professor is finally making an effort to check out shows from the library that he is interested in watching (having had it up to here with British murder mysteries, no doubt), hence Batman Begins. I was prepared to mock it and really just focus on getting some knitting done while hanging out with The Professor, but I really enjoyed it. I loved some of Morgan Freeman's lines, and the way they wove in all the gizmos Batman has and why he has them. Katie Holmes I could have done without. Sorry, but her character was just a little too reminiscent of her Dawson's Creek character. I thought she was decent in Thank You for Smoking, but if she just dropped out of movie-making, I would feel no great loss. Anyhow, Batman Begins was a fun movie. Made me wish we had some other Batman movies on hand to do a little marathon.

And good news, I did get a bunch of knitting done. Finished the first sleeve for my Fair Isle Yoke sweater, which is possibly morphing into a cardigan instead of a pullover. On Sunday I got the second sleeve going, and I made bread again and got some more spinning done while The Professor practiced piano (finally! I love when he plays, and I'm hoping he'll do it more often). The whole wheat version of the bread was even more delicious, and as I am writing this right now more bread, a double batch of the whole wheat variation, is rising in the oven. Man, I feel so cool. I am making bread. I didn't think I had it in me. I need to go do some more spinning to make my morning of homemaking activities really feel complete.

Bread!

2008-02-16T13:40:00.000-08:00

For weeks now The Professor and I have been wanting to make our own bread. We have two perfectly serviceable bakeries quite close, but The Professor's mom makes her own bread, and it's heavenly. Also, it's expensive at the bakery, and we seem to be going through it at an alarming rate. I suggested we each make a loaf, sort of a Bread-Off, because it would be more fun to be in the kitchen together and feel more like play than work if we were each making bread. The usual trash talk ensued about whose bread would be better. I decided to go with a trusted volume from my mom's cookbook library that I inherited.

The corner was folded down on this recipe. I took it as a sign.

I also used mom's KitchenAid that I inherited. If James Beard tells me I can use a KitchenAid mixer, I believe him. Here's the dough after it's initial kneading in the mixer.

Next I let it rise (forgot to take a photo), then punched it down and put it in the loaf pan for its second rising. This is how it looked at the end of that (and after I'd sliced the top open per the instructions to ready it for baking.

And a mere 33 minutes later, I took this out of the oven.

Looks pretty good to me! The proof will come when we cut it open, but the instructions say to wait 2-3 hours before doing so. It's been half an hour so far. Luckily The Professor is taking a nap so that should help me restrain myself. I want him to see it unsliced.

Alas, his loaf has not fared so well. He used the Joy of Cooking, and he used some wheat flour and some bread flour that might be past its prime (but does flour go bad? I didn't think it did). His dough didn't rise properly and so he worked some more gluten into it, and it seems to have risen a little more, but I just don't know. I'm still hoping it can somehow be salvaged.

UPDATE: The bread was delicious. It's 3/4s eaten already. Andy's never rose. We're going to do some more experimenting with it today, but it might just be compost. Live and learn.

Audiobook, A War of Gifts: An Ender Story

2008-02-16T05:25:00.000-08:00

by Orson Scott Card

Read by Stefan Rudnicki and Scott Brick

Loved this story. I love all the Bean and Ender books that I've read (ie, listened to, because I just love Scott Brick and Stefan Rudnicki, although I can do without Gabrielle de Cuir). This one is a short novella, although I realize now that I must have been listening to an abridged version, because it was only two CDs, and there is an unabridged four-CD version, so I'll have to go back to the library for that one.

It's set at Battle School at Christmas in the time after Ender arrives but before Bean. I love how science fiction is such a fantastic vehicle for social commentary. I thought of Rachel the entire time I was listening to this story and her efforts to reclaim Christmas this past year. I think listening to this book might become one of my Christmas rituals, right up there with watching Emmet Otter's Jugband Christmas. I recommend this book, but of course to get the full enjoyment out of it, I recommend the entire Ender series and the entire Bean/Shadow series be read first. They really are fantastic books. If you commute by car or are going on a long driving trip, take some of these audiobooks along. You won't regret it.

Fiber fun updates

2008-02-15T08:43:00.001-08:00

Here's the progress so far (end of yesterday, aka Day 6) on my sweater:

This photo taken at the end of Day 2 shows the color a little better (even though it also highlights my less than incredible ribbing):

I love the subtle changes in the hand dyed yarn. It's from Shelridge Farms, their Soft Touch DK. Yum. I'm using a size US#3 needle, and I'm surprised how fast it's going. It is just a stockinette tube for the moment, so I shouldn't be too shocked, but I still am a little.

Here are the promised shots of the Two-Tone Shrug:

And a shot of my addition to the pattern, an armpit gusset to make it a little less fitted (this shot does the best job of showing the true colors out of any of these photos):

I have also been using this baby:

to produce this:

which is my 4th go at the wheel. A definite improvement over my first few tries as you can see.

#1 on a drop spindle, at which point I decided not to pursue spinning at all:

#2 on a very nice two-treadle wheel sort of like this one, I think.

And my 2nd go at a wheel, first time on the one-treadle Ashford pictured above:

The disastrous results of my 3rd attempt at the wheel are fortunately hidden by the stuff I spun on the 4th try.

Phew, that's a lot of pictures! Thank you to my awesome friend Geno for the Flickr photo uploading tips.

Oh, crap

2008-02-13T07:21:00.000-08:00

My friend Mary Ann just introduced me to Scrabulous. I just passed 5 times in a row so I could play E-P-I-T-O-M-E on a triple word score, but it was worth it. I am already ahead again (for the moment, Mary Ann is a worthy opponent). Here's our game so far:

I foresee many hours wasted playing Scrabble online (unless a copyright infringement lawsuit brings it down). If you want to play a game, just let me know. I'm Darxyanne on there, too. It's a little harder to bring my A-game online, and I miss the shakey-shake of the tile bag, the nice feel of wood in your fingers when you lay down a word, but there are so many people I can't play because they live too far away. Scrabulous to the rescue! I've already challenged my favorite Scrabble buddy, my dear Aunt Marsha. Let's see if she will play...

She is wafting on the odor

2008-02-12T15:53:00.000-08:00

Just a little PSA to tell people about a very delicious smell of which I have recently become enamored. Lilith's Apothecary was the source. I'm sure you've all heard of Etsy, but if you haven't (I actually encountered two people in the past week who hadn't, shocking), it's a great source of handmade items. Anyhoo, the Orange Rosewood facial cream is sooooo yummy-smelling. I want to keep putting it on so I can keep smelling it. It's really yummy. If you see me on the street, be sure to ask to smell my face, because it smells good. It is also nice to have face cream again. I went for a couple months without any, and my face was feelin' mighty dry.

I know probably only Jonestah will get the title reference (hmm, it looks like I remembered it wrong, but I like my memory of it better), but I had to use it anyhow. So for the rest of y'all, you can educate yourself by checking out some new Lynda Barry (I loved "Before You Write," "Summer Love Showdown," and "Please Mr. Postman," all reminiscient of the good old days, when Thursday meant the City Paper's latest issue and a new Ernie Pook's Comeek; The Professor will no doubt enjoy "50 Teeth and 13 Nipples."). And check it out! The strip to which the title of this post refers can be found here. Scroll down to page 4, Cooking with Freddie. Classic.

Edited to add photos and linkage to Mirandala, my favorite source of news on the internet.

Book: Made from Scratch

2008-02-11T08:33:00.001-08:00

Subtitle: Reclaiming the Pleasures of the American Hearth

by: Jean Zimmerman

It took me a couple weeks to get through this one, only because life was getting in the way, and I couldn't just stay home and read all day. I actually finished it a couple weeks ago and had dreamed of writing a little more intelligent, in-depth review of it, but guess what? That's not happening. Suffice it to say, I quite enjoyed this book. I got it out of the library because it was on the shelf next to something else I was seeking, but I haven't read that one yet (a rather heavy-looking tome on the history of housework).

The book was well written, and I enjoyed the content as well as the style. My only beef with the book is the false advertising of the subtitle. Because the reclaiming part? The how the heck do we get back to being connected to our homes and the other people in them in a real way, through the making and sharing of homemade food, by cleaning up after ourselves for goodness sake, and maybe creating something handmade? Yeah, that was like 3 pages at the very end. It did not suffice.

A bunch of people floated to mind while reading this book. Kelly, Anne, Claudia: y'all would dig this book, I think. I would recommend it to anyone but y'all especially.

Falling off the wagon

2008-02-09T14:10:00.000-08:00

Today I made my first purchase this year of a new item that wasn't food or hygiene related. I bought yarn. I took a pledge (to myself and to a friend) not to buy any new yarn in 2008 even before we officially decided to do the Compact, so it feels doubly lousy. The circumstances are extenuating. I have three pairs of socks on the needles for which I am going to run out of each color before I finish the second sock, and in all three cases, the first sock is completely done, with ends woven in and everything, making creative color mixing to stretch the yarn I have an unappealing option. The socks were all started in September. I knew I needed the yarn since October, just never got around to buying it.

But I went a little further and got some other colors of yarn to use as accents for some fair isle sweaters I have planned. I have the base yarn for four different fair isle sweaters, but not enough accent yarn for even one of them as it stands now. I could just make solid sweaters, but I wanted them to be fair isle when I bought the base yarn, I just didn't buy the accent yarn at the time because I didn't have the color card. I tried to buy accent yarn at last year's Stitches Midwest, and I did get some, but they didn't have all of the colors I wanted.

I am usually so excited when buying yarn, but the (completely self-induced) guilt is ruining my usual high. I think the only cure is to go start one of the sweaters for which the accent yarn will soon be winging its way to me, but I want to finish at least one of the BSJs this weekend. Both of them have been sitting there for weeks now with their ends dangling, their shoulder seams unsewn and the buttons languishing in a coaster on the end table. I did finish my shrug finally, and it looks great. Photos to come post-blocking.

I am hoping this will be my only departure from my non-yarn-buying path this year. And I'm saying this with a trip to Scotland planned in the coming months. Home of many sheep and much delicious yarn. If I feel this cruddy getting stuff I need to finish using stuff that's already in my stash, how am I going to feel if I just haul off and buy completely new stuff? I can't even think about it.

Movie: Clerks II

2008-02-09T07:05:00.000-08:00

Thursday night I indulged myself in a second viewing of this movie, and I loved it all over again. I think the highlight for me is Randall's face during his conversation with Elias about why Elias and his girlfriend Mira haven't sealed the deal, as it were. Classic. Anything with Elias is one of my favorite parts of the movie, but every part of it is so wonderful that I can't really have a favorite. And what am I saying? What about Jay?! Ah, Jason Mewes, I adore him. I want to knit him a nice hat; that's how much I love Jason Mewes. I wonder what kind of hat he would like? Grey? Black? Plain? With a design on it? I can't let him keep wearing this sort of store-bought crap, can I? Hmmm, better get hats made for me and The Professor first. Yes, it's true. I'm a knitter without a hat. And a knitter with a sweetie without a hat. I made him one but it came out so ugly (I haven't even photographed it-- it's that bad) that it's an outside work hat, right out of the gate.

Anyhow, if you haven't yet seen Clerks II, give it a try. It's pure gold. All hail Kevin Smith.

Very big news

2008-02-06T07:55:00.000-08:00

Well, something momentous has occurred. I have changed my mind about a long-held prejudice.

Yes, it's true. I have decided that.... (drumroll please)

I will eat brussels sprouts.

For a long time, brussels sprouts shared the dubious honor of being listed as one of the three things I would not eat, the other two being liver and goat cheese. No plans to sample either of those any time soon, in case you're wondering.

It has happened twice now. The Professor has brought them home from the farmer's market still attached to their funky little stalk, and he has sauteed them (not the overboiling that I remember from my youth), once in bacon grease, once in olive oil with garlic. Both times, they were totally good. I do prefer the bacon grease method, of course, but it's a complete surprise to me that I will eat them at all. I used to say that I gave them up for lent. In 1983.

I am happy to report this new expansion of my vegetable horizons. Oh, and I should also add that a splash of vinegar was a nice addition to the sprouts. I tried both apple cider and balsamic. Both worked equally well.

In slightly less positive culinary news, yesterday I found some completely inexplicable glass in a bowl of very delicious squash soup. We can't figure out from whence it came. Luckily I caught it before chomping down and slicing up the inside of my mouth. Subsequent enjoyment of the soup is dampened somewhat by the mysterious origins of the glass, because I have no idea if there's more in there. Maybe I'll run the rest of it through a strainer today, but it's pretty thick.

And an empty breakfast bowl from yesterday left for ~10 minutes on a table near a plant was found to contain... an ant! It's February, for crying out loud! Are they living in the pot? The plant was donated to us by The Professor's mom, who does move her plants outside during the summer, so who knows. I was completely grossed out. I liberated the ant into the backyard. Good luck, little fella! Don't come back!

Book: A Three Dog Life, a memoir

2008-02-04T08:59:00.000-08:00

By: Abigail Thomas

Heart-rending but short. I read it in about 2 hours, part while eating breakfast, the rest on the couch with the cat in my lap. It's written by a woman whose husband suffered traumatic brain injury. The writing is beautiful, but the story is sad. I recommend it, but line up something happy for when you finish it is my advice.

The part that stuck out to me most was how, in the wake of this tragedy, she has put together a life for herself that she can like and that she can enjoy at times, and how it used to be hard to live with the knowledge that she wouldn't have the life she does if her husband hadn't been hurt. I feel like that a lot. So many things in my life would be different if my mom hadn't died and even died when she did. I wouldn't have met The Professor, at least not in the same way. I wouldn't have my cat. I wouldn't have this house, or her car, or the ability to take this time to find work I love. I doubt I'd even be in Ohio. It's a very strange thing to realize how much one thing changes your life, and how it causes this weird schism when you don't like the thing that happened, but you do like your life. Here's what she writes:

So now today I look up acceptance and the definition is "to receive gladly" and that doesn't sound right. I flip to the back, and look up its earliest root, "to grasp," and discover this comes from the old English for "a thread used in weaving," and bingo, that's it. You can't keep pulling out the thread. You have to weave it in and then you have to go on weaving.

That pretty much sums it up.

And what am I doing reading this tragedy anyhow? Someone told me it was good, and even though I knew it would be sad, I'm still a sucker for memoirs. The writer is also a knitter. No good reason, but at least it was a quick read.

Movie: The Oldest Living Confederate Widow Tells All

2008-01-31T14:18:00.000-08:00

I think the title says it all as far as plot summary goes. With my birthday buddy Anne Bancroft in it, how can it not be good? Her part was sort of eh, though. It was not the most interesting part of the movie. Diane Lane and Donald Sutherland, stars of the flashback segments, were absolutely fantastic, though. And it was a great movie for a vintage clothes fiend like myself. The styles, like the story, spanned many decades, and I thought they did a very good job on all of them. Once again it's confirmed: the 40s clothes are the ones I love the most. I am sure I was either a very well-dressed lady or a man with an appreciative eye for stylin' babes in a previous 40s life.

As I am Hollywood's pawn, for me this film was a bit of a tear-jerker, but it was fairly mild on the pathos scale for those of you with stouter constitutions. I definitely recommend this movie. Kind of strange-- I could only get it on video, not DVD, from the library. I think I got this movie out because I thought it was going to be a film adaptation of Widow of the South, which was an excellent book. I got the two titles jumbled in my head. And hey, look, there's a video trailer for the book. I never saw one of those before. And what do you know, that made me cry. I am a sap, what can I say. I really need to monitor myself more closely and not watch things about war or death.

Catching up

2008-01-30T04:34:00.001-08:00

I've been fairly busy the last week or so. Last Tuesday I went to the monthly Entrepreneurs for Sustainability meeting with a very cool woman, Jennifer, that I met at last November's Ladies Who Launch meeting at the Cleveland Wine School. It was the best E4S meeting I've ever attended, because it was basically all networking but with a little structure. Their meetings are often rather presentation-heavy, and while I've learned lots of interesting stuff, there are only so many people you can meet when you squeeze the meeting people part in around the edges. In a small world moment, I ran into Don O. and his wife, Barbie. That was a nice suprise. I also ran into two of my fellow classmates in the Greening Your Home class at the Nature Center, a couple who have a construction business that is big on reusing and salvaging materials. Sweet. The most interesting person I met that night was Hank Haberman, who is working on spreading urban forest permaculture throughout northeast Ohio. Cool. Let's start with our yard.

On Wednesday, my new-ish friend Kimberly came over for a little knitting and gabbing. I got a few rows done on the preemie BSJ, which has since been finished and is awaiting seaming, even though I had planned to work on the larger of the two charity blankets still languishing in my knitting basket. Thursday I did some work with a new organizing client, and that evening was the Greening Your Home class at the Nature Center, where we had a nice review of some of the stuff we learned at Yestermorrow last summer about the stack effect, vapor barrier, etc. I also got a business card of someone who does green rehab locally, so that was good.

Friday was the Cuyahoga Spinners' Guild meeting, so I went there and got some help on my knitting stuckness from the fabulous Judy. I confirmed my suspicion that underarm gussets were the way to go on my Two-Tone Shrug, so that project is back on track. I also confirmed that, yes, I need to rip back on the Nordic Lights wrap, so I'm working myself up to it, because it will be a sad moment when I have to pull about half of it out. And I spun! I did most of a bobbin's worth of yarn, and by the end, it wasn't even looking so bad. I lucked out to sit between two very experienced spinners, so I think I was absorbing some of their skill by osmosis. I did more spinning on Saturday, maybe not quite another half-bobbin full, didn't look as good as Friday's. I think the edge of the couch is not an ideal seat for spinning at home. It's definitely a skill that takes practice to develop.

On Sunday I went to a baby shower for my cousin, and I hadn't yet seamed and sewn on buttons for the BSJ I was making her, so she got (gasp) the smaller of the charity blankets. You know what? She loved it. It's acrylic so that thing can go on the floor, in the washing machine, in the dryer. It can get puked on, spilled on, whatever. That thing will wear like iron and probably be just the same when the child has gone off to college. I feel okay about not giving it to charity after all. And frankly, my track record with baby gifts is that hardly anyone has been gifted the thing I originally began with their baby in mind. It's usually a few babies ago. Hey, you still got a knitted gift. Feel lucky.

This week has been quiet so far until today, working 8 full hours in a row with no break (usual max is 6). Phew! I'm beat. So that's it. I'll post spinning and knitting photos soon. For now, I'm pooped!

Why, Dennis, why??

2008-01-25T06:43:00.000-08:00

I am going to cry now.

Kucinich drops out. Now I know why my brother doesn't vote.

I found this link on someone else's blog. I wish I could tell her thank you, but I would have preferred to be blissfully ignorant for a while longer if I could. Sob.

He was the only one with an environmental policy that I could get behind. I think now I'm left with John Edwards, whose environmental ideas as stated on a MoveOn town hall video that has since disappeared from their web site made me laugh out loud ("and then we'll have lots of farms in Africa!" was the punchline), and whose ideas about universal health care make me want to run screaming into the night. Sigh.

Maybe some time with the spinning guild will help me snap out of it. Lots happened this week, so I'll post a more upbeat update later.

Bowling was awesome

2008-01-22T10:37:00.000-08:00

We had such a great time bowling that we are going to do it again soon. So those of you who missed it can still get in on the fun. And if it's just The Professor and I who go, that is fine with me, too. What a super fun time. Paul was by far the best of us, and he gave me some good pointers so that I could achieve my initial goal of at least one non-gutter ball. I even got one strike and one spare! That allowed me to accomplish my second goal of all 10 pins down in one turn. Alas, I didn't achieve my final goal of breaking 60 points in one game, but that just leaves me something to strive for next time. Not too shabby for essentially a first-time bowler. I took my camera but was too busy having fun to take pictures. Whoops. Again, I am so grateful to the people who came out to celebrate with us. Thank you.

And the dinner I made to take with us turned out great, if I do say so myself. It was my first time inventing a crock pot dish, and I was a little worried about it. I don't really understand crock pots as well as I do things like baking and sauteeing. With crock pots, you read the recipe, you follow it, and as if by magic, the ingredients become a meal. How many cups of liquid per cups of dry are needed in a crock pot? Who knows? I winged it with 2 C wheat berries, 2 C white beans (northern or navy, I'm not really sure), an onion, and 7 1/2 C veggie stock, because that's what I had. When it was done, 9 hours later (7 on high, 2 on low), I tossed it with grated carrot (2 C?), steamed green beans (1 bag frozen) and a lovely homemade vinaigrette, and it was a very nice wholesome dinner with a little grated parmesan sprinkled on top. Big thanks go to The Professor who babysat it while working from home yesterday afternoon and called to give me periodic updates on the doneness of the beans and wheat berries. I am excited finally to cross the threshhold into experimentation with the crock pot, and if anyone knows of any resources on the science of slow cooking, I'd be much obliged.

Tonight I'm going to an E4S meeting. That's Entrepreneurs for Sustainability, dontcha know. I'm meeting a woman I met at November's Ladies Who Launch meeting there, so that will get me to go, because honestly, I'd just as soon stay home and keep reading the book I'm on now and maybe do some knitting. I got to within 20 sts of the end of BSJ #3 before running out of yarn, and that's using ALL of it, saving nothing for seaming (I can use whatever for that). So I have some scraps in my stash that will just have to do, and I had to cut it a few rows short as it was. I also started a preemie-sized BSJ to donate to Christopher's Angels. Thank you to Seven on the Knittyboard for the link, and thank you to Elizabeth for the pattern.

Feast of Madelyn

2008-01-21T04:10:00.000-08:00

Today, Monday January 21st, marks 6 years since my sweet wonderful momelet left this world. My mom was pretty much the greatest person I ever knew, and although I didn't realize it until after she was gone, she was also my best friend. At her memorial services (yes, we had two, and both were standing room only), both my aunt and uncle also said she was their best friend. And in the little book I put out at the services for people to write memories of mom that I could keep and reread later, nearly everyone who contributed said that mom made them feel like her best friend from the moment they met her. That's the kind of person she was.

The most memorable and salient quality of my mom, besides being best friends with everyone she ever met, is that she loved a good party. She loved to get together with friends, eat, laugh, drink and generally have a good time. She threw legendary parties since long before I was born. Even the most modest get-together was more fun with my mom in attendance.

The past few years I've made an effort to celebrate mom's life on this day because otherwise it would just be too sad, and I'd miss her too much. I pretty much miss her every day but especially on this one. So tonight, in honor of mom, we are going to celebrate the holiday I made up, the Feast of Madelyn (thanks to my buddy Lo, who was with me on the phone and facilitated the naming process). We are going bowling at Mahall's. It was The Professor's great idea, because I didn't get it together to plan something fancier, and a perfect one since mom used to bowl in a league. I had envisioned an event at the Cleveland Wine School learning about wine and food pairing like we did for the Ladies Who Launch meeting in November (mom would have loved that), but they were closed this weekend and I'm attached to celebrating on or near this exact date. Maybe we'll do that next year. Tonight, though, it will be great to see some friends and goof around at the bowling alley. I feel so grateful to everyone who is planning to come. They help me keep the memory of my mom alive, even though none of them ever got to meet her.

If you are far away and want to celebrate with us in solidarity, why not go bowling with some friends tonight, have a great time, and raise a glass to Madelyn, Queen of the Party Girls.

I cooked!

2008-01-19T16:41:00.000-08:00

My most exciting news for the weekend is that I cooked. I have been really bad about cooking for a long time, leaving The Professor to fend for us most of the time for longer than I care to admit. Oh, the shame of it all. But Friday, spurred on by who knows what inspiration, I made some sweet potato soup in the crock pot (recipe from this cookbook) and boiled a big pot of brown rice. I couldn't risk interrupting my momentum to stop and snap photos, but it really didn't look like much anyhow. An enormous yam, an equally enormous onion, cut and plopped unceremoniously into the crockpot, along with some garlic (2 cloves), some spices, and 4 cups of turkey broth made from Old Tom, the turkey The Professor cooked a few weeks back. The broth was treated with the appropriate amount of reverence, especially as it was nicely measured out and clearly labeled in the freezer. After 6 hours in the crock pot, I processed it in the Cuisinart with a little bit of peanut butter and lime juice. Yum. The rice we ladled it over gave it a nice stick-to-your-ribs quality, and I was so glad to have it ready to go when The Professor got home from work.

Yesterday, I made both a casserole and rice pudding. The rice pudding was in the crock pot again, using this recipe, except I left out the apricots and used brown rice and some cream that we needed to use up subbed in for some of the milk. The pudding cooked overnight and made a delicious breakfast this morning-- we both had seconds. The casserole was the leftover rice from Friday plus a can (jar) of beef that we got from The Professor's mom and dad for Xmas (they gave us 10, and they put it up themselves, which made it an extra special gift), some frozen green beans, grated cheese (grated by himself) and some cream of ... soups (celery and mushroom) as well as some eggs and milk. I ought to have put in some spices as it was a bit bland, but it was clearly adequate because while it was cooking, The Professor came downstairs and said, "The whole house smells like dinner," in a happy and satisfied way. Why don't I cook for him more often? He certainly does appreciate it. Oh, and once I added some Worcestershire sauce to it, it was divine. Didn't discover that until eating it as leftovers for lunch today, but there's still half of it left to go. Mmmmmm, Worcestershire sauce. I practically licked the dish.

On the knitting front, BSJ #3 is nearing completion. I forgot to do my increases on the buttonhole row and so had to rip back, so here's a photo I snapped while the needles were out and it actually looked like something:

I will have *just* enough yarn, I think, if that. No I-cord edging this time around, though. I'll have to try it on my next one, because of course there will be more. I continue to be thrilled with the way the color changes worked themselves into nice healthy stripes and the way the two colors of yarn (the variegated hot pink/green/white/orange and the salmon pink) work together.

You can also see evidence in this photo (upper left corner) of me finally managing to read and knit at the same time-- the cookbook holder that has been languishing in one of our icky old cupboards for so long it's acquired a funky smell (and it's lucite, so that's got to be hard to do) comes out of retirement to hold my book on the table in front of me, hands free. I'm reading an excellent book called Made from Scratch (partly responsible for the cooking blitz?), and I'm about half way done. My reading progress is likely to skyrocket now that I can read while I knit. Goodbye, television! Hello, books!

The Professor is working on some rewiring today (upstairs hall light and bathroom outlet), and he opted for the wiring scenario that did not require a trip to the hardware store and the purchase of new materials, so that was good.
Oh, and speaking of not purchasing things, today I glued up my awesome homemade pill box that I made last weekend. From a nondescript gift box to a happy little pill container. I did a much better job this past week of taking my supplements since they were in this handy little box and didn't require me to dole them out of all the different bottles each time. Anything to get them down the hatch.

Time to finish the baby sweater, and ferret out some buttons from my insane button stash. Final photos to come tomorrow-ish. Hope everyone else is having as lovely a weekend as we are.

BSJ #3, End of Day 2

2008-01-19T07:14:00.000-08:00

Got quite a bit done yesterday/last night. I am loving the way the colors are unfolding with this yarn. It's a good match for the pattern, I think. Reminds me of watermelon, with a little cantaloupe thrown in for good measure.

Still panicking the entire time about whether I will have enough yarn to finish it and what I will do if I don't. Yeah, that reduces the enjoyment factor slightly, but it's still better than all my other projects which require actual thought. I've cruised around Ravelry to see whether any one is trying to unload any of this yarn (Berroco Love It) in a color that will match, but it looks like only some brown up for sale, which isn't quite the direction I want to go. I am not above just writing to people who have this yarn in their stash and making them an offer, but the due date for this puppy is next Sunday when I attend the baby shower, so that would be tricky. Hi, you know that yarn you have that you have no intention of selling? Can you sell it to me and oh, by the way, can you please ship it overnight, today? Don't imagine that would go over too well. I'm just going to knit away on it as fast as I can and see where things wind up. I have no shortage of yarn in my stash, but as for something that will match this yarn of a similar weight and fiber content, nothing that fits the bill, I don't think. Fingers crossed it won't come to that. With the Colinette Cadenza I used to make the first two of these, I had loads of extra, using the same needle size and the same number of skeins; it just feels different this time for some reason.

Book: Write It Down, Make It Happen

2008-01-19T07:10:00.000-08:00

Subtitle: Knowing What You Want, and Getting It

by: Henriette Anne Klauser

I finished this book a few days ago, but it's taken me this long to settle down enough that I could write about it without just exclaiming how amazing it is and telling everyone to go read it at once (although that sentiment still applies). To call this book self-help does not do it justice. It's more like magic spells to improve your life and inspiring stories to light a fire under you to do so. The book is a collection of techniques and ways to use writing to manifest what you want in your life, interwoven with stories about people who have done just that. I heard about the book from Barbara Winter, who mentioned it in a recent email newsletter, and immediately got it out of the library.

Several chapters had me weeping at the beauty of how life worked out so well for people using simple journal writing to chart the course of their lives, sometimes without even realizing it. A woman who needed a care facility for her aging mother with Alzheimer's, another woman's search for her future husband, the author's own dream of having a walk-on part in an opera, several stories of people looking for the perfect home and miraculously finding it. The reason this book moved me so much is in part that I have used some of the techniques in the past, before this book was even written, and they worked. I have bored many of you with the dream job wish list story that resulted in me getting just such a job within a few weeks of making the list, but in case anyone missed it, I'll recite it again.

It was 1997, and I was having a rough time emotionally, and my dear friend and godbrother, Jay, gave me the very good advice to get a job-job (I was freelance editing from home at the time) so that I would have a reason to get out and be in polite society, a reason to pull myself together on a regular basis. So I wrote down a list of qualities I wanted in a job. I wanted to work only two or three days/week so I could keep freelancing. I wanted to be able to dress casually sometimes and dress up sometimes. I wanted to work alone sometimes and work in a group sometimes. I wanted to use my writing skills and my talking on the phone skills. I wanted to be able to bike or walk to my office and to work for someone nice. I am sure there was more on there, but that's what I remember 10+ years later. So I looked at my list and I thought, Hmm, a part-time development job might fit the bill. And then I thought, Well, I'm not going to find a job like that in the back of the City Paper, so I better start making some calls. So I called my friend and former boss, Paul, who didn't know of any jobs but needed someone to re-do his resume, so I said, Sure, I can do that. It would get me out of the house and earn me a couple bucks. Fine.

While I was at Paul's office typing up his resume changes, he was in the next cubicle over on the phone, and he pops his head up over the divider, hand over the receiver, and asks what kind of job I want. I can see he is just on hold for a minute, so I don't go into detail but just say, Some kind of stupid office work, anything. Well, he finishes up his phone call, and then comes over and says, Well, I'm not sure it's what you're looking for, but I know someone hiring for a 2-day/week development job. After picking my jaw up off the floor, I said, yes, that would be perfect. With Paul's recommendation, I had the job within a couple weeks.

So, I know that the techniques in this book work, and I think, why haven't I been using them the whole time since then? Well, I'm back on track now. I can't recommend this book enough. If you are dissatisfied with anything in your life: job, home, relationships, anything, get a copy and try it out. There's nothing to be lost but a few hours of your time. It's a quick read, although I had to pace myself because my reaction to it was so intense, and if it works for you, too, think how much happier you might be.

What, no knitting?

2008-01-18T08:23:00.001-08:00

The astute observers among you may have noticed that there has been very little knitting content on this blog as yet. Well, I'm not styling myself as a knitting blogger, I tell myself, so what does it matter? But showing off and sharing my knitting was one of the things that moved me to get going on this blog, and I do want it to be part of the mix. I mean, even I will get bored of me sounding off about all the crap I'm not buying. And I've got a hell of a lot of yarn to use up. So what gives? Why no knitting posts? I will tell you why. I am stuck.

I did honestly cut my right thumb on Day 3 of the new year, and that sidelined me for a bit, but it's been thoroughly healed for a few days now, so that's no excuse. And I've got a bunch of projects on the needles, so it's not like I don't have any subject matter. But when I say stuck, I mean stuck. All my projects are currently at the point where I need to sit down and sort them out. They all require thought and concentration. I can't just pick up something and mindlessly knit away. So, what does the lazy knitter (me) do in this situation? Start a new project, of course! So I am happy to tell you about my newest knitting project, a baby sweater for my cousin's impending shower. Here's what I've got so far:

I swatched and cast on at last night's Greening Your Home class, and then I just knit away, right past the increase row for the fullness above the cuff, so when we got home, I reknit that part. I'm planning to work more on it today. Oh, and before class I asked our teacher, Jim LaRue, about the frost-protected shallow foundation, and he said that it can be integrated with existing construction and that it is cheaper than the kind of foundation we have in the house now (full basement and crawl space), so that's great news. There was at least one guy there last night who does green re-hab, so next time I need to get some business cards and start talking to people about our addition. In case you were wondering, yes, the irony that we're doing the Compact and talking about adding on to our house is not lost on me.

Oh, and I have to apologize. I told a whopper yesterday. We bought a new refrigerator in 2007. Yipes. It is staggering to me how unconsciously the purchasing of new things has occurred in my life thus far. Staggering.

To buy new tires?

2008-01-17T14:41:00.000-08:00

In which The Professor joins us for a guest post as his penance for breaking our Compact agreement on Day 2.

The Compact: an agreement that we will do everything possible to avoid contributing to rampant consumerism in the year 2008. We will buy nothing new except essentials (like food), we will do everything possible to buy used or local, to make it ourselves, or to do without.

Day two of the Compact (January 2nd): I bought tires for my car. The tires are brand, spanking new, and almost certainly not locally-made. Oops. This makes for a good discussion point, though. At first the answer to the question “should I buy new tires for my car?” seems obvious. The car already had used tires, they were no longer safe to drive on, yes, buy the new ones. But I put no research or discussion to the question. Could I have had them resurfaced? Could I have purchased a set of slightly used tires, and then reduced my use of the car by taking public transportation or biking? It would have been more inconvenient, but I most likely would have saved quite a bit of money, and the hypothetical used tires would have gotten a year or two of additional use before being recycled. Or perhaps I would have concluded that brand new tires were my only option, so suck it up and buy them.

Anyway, the new tires are now slightly used, with about a hundred miles on them. I’ll have to do a better job keeping in mind The Compact philosophy. It’s impressive how ingrained I am in the “buy new and don’t worry about it” philosophy.

Embracing the moral dilemma

2008-01-17T12:53:00.001-08:00

My dear friend Anne posted a comment yesterday that gave me some wonderful food for thought (thanks, babe). Anne wrote:

there's some good stuff in "the compact" but imho it's both way too vague and way too extreme all at once. anything that makes buying a notebook a moral dilemma is way too much work for me!!!! :) i'll just do my normal routine of not buying much stuff, period.

First off, I did get to chat with The Professor about journals after I wrote that post about them, and we are both in agreement. Journals are a necessary exception to the nothing new rule. We both feel very attached to our choices of journal, and while we happily economize on paper in every other way possible in our household, journals are one item on which we are unwilling to compromise.

Just to give you an idea, I'll tell you a little about our household paper habits. I should give credit here and mention that it was the poet Chrystos, reading at Giovanni's Room (oh, Rachel, don't look, it's a terrible web site) in Philadelphia, who first inspired me to use every bit of each piece of paper, out of respect for the gift that paper represents. Since 1993 or so when I heard her speak, I (and now we) print on both sides of all pieces of 8 1/2" x 11" paper, both at home and at work. After printing both sides, if a paper has even one bit with one side blank, it gets cut up to use as scrap paper for making notes (if we don't write it down, we forget it), which I've got little boxes of in nearly every room in the house. No sticky notes or cute notepads from Target for us. Junk mail gets evaluated for scrap usage on the back, as do all the little library tickets we bring home. The scrap paper thing we do at our workplaces, as well, and I've even gotten other people doing both of these things at a few places I've worked in the past. I am doing my part to reduce paper consumption on the planet, by golly. I'm splashing out with a new journal. It feels like a reasonable indulgence.

The joy we get from our journals is also worth the consumption of new resources to us. That half hour I spend every day filling my beloved college-ruled lines with black ink are my therapy, and I know The Professor delights in drawing possum limbs on the creamy paper in his journal. These aren't things that are going to wind up in landfill while we're alive, either. I've kept journals since high school and before, and the only way they're leaving this house is if disaster strikes and they go up in flames. The Professor's will some day wind up in a library, I'm sure, testament to his future Legendary Contribution to Science. In an effort to make my journal consumption less of a burden on the world's resources, I am going to at least find an alternative with some more recycled content and no plastic cover. I have got some contenders so far and will keep looking. I've got a couple months left on the one I'm using now. I'm also planning to buy in bulk so that the amount of carbon spent getting them to me is reduced, because a supply to last me a good few years will come all in one go.

But in response to Anne's comment (sorry, that was a heck of a digression), I don't agree that the Compact is vague. It might seem vague, but what I think the Compact is, is personal. I've been doing it all of two weeks, so I'm no expert, but this idea isn't some credo handed out by someone to which we've agreed. This experiment is about becoming conscious of our choices, not cruising along on auto-pilot like we have done. I like that we have to think of these things ourselves, talk about our choices, make up our minds, be actively engaged with the challenge of reducing our consumption. I mean, we've only got to have the journal sit-down once, and then we're done. It took about 3 minutes to hash out. Because we're new and coming up the curve, the number of conversations we'll need to have is higher these days, but it will level out, and then we'll just cruise along on a new improved auto-pilot, and that's part of why I want to do the Compact. I want the moral dilemma. It's there whether I want it or not, so to me, bringing it to the forefront and wrestling with it now is an investment in my future peace of mind.

And to put it in perspective, let's have a little run-down of what I purchased in 2007, before taking the pledge. New clothes: zero. New shoes: one pair construction boots, required for Home Design/Build class (and I needed them, more than once I would have lost a toe if I had just been wearing tennies). New electronics: zero. New music CDs: zero (although Andy got me one for my bday). About the only new thing I did buy last year was fabric and yarn, and I think we got some Stargate SG-1 DVDs. So I'm not some shop-a-holic swerving hard left into this new way of life. I was already pretty light on the consumption scale. But I want to go as far as I can. I want the extreme, too, but I guess that's not news to any of y'all who know me.

So, thanks, Annie-kins, for helping me to clarify why I am doing this experiment. Love ya, babe!

Whoops, another new fun blogging error, published this before it was done. I like making these newbie mistakes and getting them out of the way :)

The Compact: Eating Out

2008-01-16T08:23:00.000-08:00

Well, this morning I just couldn't decide what to have for breakfast. We were out of bread, and I'm currently sick of my favorite apple/yogurt/walnuts concoction. The kitchen's a bit of a mess, so cooking an egg didn't feel like the best option. My ideal scenario would have been to find a friend who wasn't busy and go to the nearby bakery/cafe for a pastry and some chat (we are going to skip right over the fact that 9 times out of 10, pastry = sugar = what the heck I thought I was giving up sugar), but alas no one I tried was answering their phone this morning, and the one person who did had just eaten. I then proceeded to spend a good hour or so wrestling with myself about whether or not eating out fits in with our Compact-ing journey or not. The Professor and I have discussed it some, but we didn't reach a resolution, so I couldn't just go with a clear conscience and be done with it.

Given that the wrestling was occurring on an empty stomach, it's no surprise that I finally gave up, bundled up, grabbed some videos to return to the library, and stalked off to the bakery for a frickin' cheese danish, no-sugar pledge be damned. On the way, I stopped into the hardware store to see about a light bulb we need for the office, and who should I run into but The Professor himself. Hooray! Alas, he was rushing late to an appointment to do lab/science things, so we didn't get to hash out our self-imposed rules on eating out, but we will, I hope, continue the conversation at the first available opportunity. He did give me his blessing on the danish, and a loaf of bread he'd picked up at a different, slightly less convenient but decidedly yummier bakery that he'd gotten since leaving the house this morning. So, I could have skipped the danish and eaten toast, but I got the danish anyhow. And a muffin. And a croissant. You have to spend $5 to use a debit card at this bakery, so I couldn't just get the one item, alas. And at that point, my mind was made up.

The whole eating out issue brings up so many questions. I am not even going to start going into it now, but I am sure it will be the source of more than one future post. I wonder how other people have answered this question. I'm going to go hunt around other Compact blogs and the Yahoo list and see what I can find out.

We also started a little bit of interesting conversation in the hardware store. On hearing a little bit of our Compact conversation, our favorite salesperson there asked, "Well, if everyone stops buying things, wouldn't the economy just grind to a halt?" I wanted to say, but didn't, is the American population so moronic that if everyone did stop buying unnecessary things all at once (in that insanely unlikely scenario, I know many people who have no intention whatsoever of changing their consumption patterns even one iota), that we would all just sit here with our thumbs up our asses and not figure out any other ways to make a living? I mean, people are going to need stuff (nice clean new spiral-bound journals for one thing), but having less of it isn't going to stop the world spinning. If the bulk of American jobs were manufacturing jobs, I might buy it, and I need to do my research before I can say for sure, but my guess is that most of the stuff people are buying isn't even made in the US, so whose economy are we worried about? This whole experiment is definitely going to be a thought-provoking one, I can tell.

Some more Compact thoughts: Journals

2008-01-16T05:43:00.000-08:00

I read an interesting message on the Yahoo Compact message board yesterday. The question was posed whether school supplies were the sort of thing people could buy new as an exception, and I replied that I was trying to figure out what to do about this matter myself, as I've started journaling regularly again, and I'm going to be running out of pages in my current journal way before the end of the year. I might have an extra in the drawer, but I can't recall, and if I am on my last journal, then what?

I'm pretty picky about my journals. Since the early 90s it's been the 5 1/2" x 8 1/2" 5-subject spiral-bound college-ruled notebook from CVS, and no other will do. One of the Compact-ers replied that he had loads of old school notebooks he'd only partially filled and would be happy to clean out of them what he wanted to keep and send them on to someone in need of notebooks. I think he meant the teacher, not me, which is fine, but it got me thinking. I thought, well, that's really thoughtful and nice of him. And, I thought, it makes me incredibly sad.

Writing in someone else's half-used, who-knows-what-sized, been-heaven-knows-where notebook for my journal? Good gravy. It's just too depressing to even consider. I want to live more responsibly, do my part to put the brakes on consumption in our country, but getting all the thoughts out of my head every morning is part of what makes it possible, and I don't know if I can really think into just any old notebook. I'm pretty attached to the size and shape and heft of the ones I use. We're talking over a decade of one kind of journal, a huge box of them up in the attic, all the same size and shape. I did use up all my school notebooks when I first finished college so as not to let them go to waste, but I don't know if I can compromise on this front. I might need to sneak them in under the banner of art supplies, but really, who's sneaking? This agreement is between me and me. Well, me and The Professor. I'll have to talk to him about what he thinks.

One sad thing is that CVS stopped making them with plain paper covers a while ago and the last few have had a plastic cover, which for my purposes is completely unnecessary. These babies aren't getting lots of wear as they rarely leave the house. Perhaps it's time to find a new journal supplier at least. My dream: recycled paper and then all the other things listed above, with the 5-subject separators optional.

The Professor will be posting some more Compact thoughts later today, I hope.

Movie: Keeping Mum

2008-01-14T05:24:00.000-08:00

Started it Saturday night, finished on Sunday, Keeping Mum with Rowan Atkinson was a cute dark British comedy. Decent acting, which is no surprise given the cast, which also included Maggie Smith and Kristin Scott-Thomas, and a rather predictable story, but light and relatively amusing so the predictability wasn't a problem. Rowan Atkinson really is a comic genius. Patrick Swayze has an amusing scene or two. Has he had plastic surgery? I kept wondering, though. Has he? How does one research that sort of thing, and is it really worth the time spent doing so? I'm going to guess not and just let it go. Kristin-Scott Thomas makes a hilarious Swayze-related statement in the DVD extras. Really, I'm a sucker for anything with British accents. Good knitting background movie. I recommend it.

Movie: The Terminal

2008-01-13T08:01:00.000-08:00

Last night when The Professor went dancing, I stayed home and watched the Tom Hanks film The Terminal. Or should I say the product placement film? So much product placement, so little time seems to have been the theme of this movie.

I should confess, I was predisposed to dislike this movie. I had made up my mind before I ever even picked it up at the library. So, I didn't really go into watching it with an open mind. In my defense, though, all my suspicions about the commercial nature of the movie were confirmed almost immediately, when the (I don't even care about ruining this one it was so bad, so get ready for some small spoilers) line was delivered 10 minutes into the film, "There's only one thing you can do here: shop," which was a bit too eerily reminiscent for my taste of the snippet from W right after 9/11 urging us all to get out our credit cards to fight the mean terrorists with a big dose of spending. Ugh. You know a movie is a waste when the most clever thing about it is the end credits. I won't ruin those, because it really was the best part of the film. Tom Hanks pretty much lost me at Cast Away (remember that giant commercial for FedEx?), if not before then. You've Got Mail? Are you kidding me? Just what the world needs, a cinematic ode to AOL. Barf. The word sellout is too good for Tom Hanks.

Catherine Zeta-Jones rocked in Chicago, but her character in The Terminal was so one-dimensional as to be impossible to believe and the little eyelid-flutter quirk was just too precious. The only good parts of this movie were thanks to the supporting cast. A juggling show by Kumar Pallana and Trekkie love between Diego Luna and Zoe Saldana stand out.

In unrelated news: we have a metal pot lid in our cupboard that fits the crock pot perfectly. Not ideal in terms of heat containment, but it means I don't have to haul my butt out to the thrift store to hunt down a glass one, so yay. I also made myself a homemade pill box for my vitamins out of a cardboard box we had in the attic, a sort of little gift box that a gift card probably came in. I need to add some glue to fortify it, but I'll take a picture soon to share. I'm quite proud of it! The pill box was one of the first things I thought about wanting to buy and then not buying this year. It's nice to know that 20 minutes with an Exacto knife can keep one chunk of plastic, one purchase out of my life.

Last night's movies: one hit, one miss

2008-01-12T10:17:00.000-08:00

The Adventures of Priscilla, Queen of the Desert and Home for the Holidays were our library rental picks last night. I first saw Priscilla at one of the Ritz theaters in Philly when it was first released. I don't remember if I saw it alone or with friends, but I know it was fun and fabulous, and it's lost nothing in the intervening years. The Professor enjoyed his first viewing as well.

Sadly, the second movie (necessitated by the one Excedrin I took at around 4 pm, which contained enough caffeine to keep me up all night if I'd wanted to be), was not so great. I should just say that is 100 minutes of my life I won't be getting back and leave it at that, but I won't. Australian drag queens are a tough act to follow, so perhaps it was merely the contrast, but I don't think so. Home for the Holidays was just basically unwatchable schlock, and it didn't have to be. Holly Hunter, Anne Bancroft for crying out loud. These are heavy hitters; it could have been a good movie. How Claire Danes' 3 minutes of screen time earn her mention on the DVD case, I do not know. Robert Downey, Jr. is both spastic and sloppy; one gets the sense not so much acting as just being an annoying jerk and getting paid for it, to which I say good for him, but I don't want to watch. Dylan McDermott is not so good looking that he can get by on that alone, but the movie sure tried to let him. The one redeeming moment is the movie is when you get to see that Charles Durning is probably a pretty good dancer. Overall, though, quite disappointing, and I would not recommend Home for the Holidays to anyone, not even as background noise.

A post a day keeps the guilt away?

2008-01-11T15:34:00.000-08:00

Well, we didn't go see The Golden Compass after all. I had a bit of a headache, The Professor's tummy hurt a little (he's napping now), and we just got part way there, turned around and came home. A trusted source, my dear friend Rachel, told me I didn't miss much so I feel okay about it. We might try again, we might wait for the DVD. It's funny, because I love to see movies on the big screen, but I don't really care for the volume at most movie theaters, so I'm more and more willing to settle for the DVD experience. Esp. now that I can view them widescreen at home. Small, but I prefer the original aspect ratio. My film aficionado geekiness comes out.

In Compact news, last night while tidying up the kitchen, the crock pot took a dive off the top of the frig. How much does that suck? The pot part and the crock part survived, the lid part shattered. Like a good little blogger-in-training, I took a picture. Pretty exciting, eh? Hey, I'm new to this blogging, cut me some slack. So now I need to find a crockpot lid replacement. That should be a fun adventure. Part of me wonders if I can't find one whether I'll convert that appliance to a dye pot for yarn. I'm still in the dreaming stages on yarn dyeing, but I take any opportunity I can. There's also the option of just using some other pot lid on the crock pot. Doesn't have to be glass, right? That might be the way we go. Thrift stores are like the lottery: you have to play to win, and hunting for a spare crock pot lid just does not sound like how I want to spend my time.

Also on the living more sustainably front, last night The Professor and I attended the first in a series of lectures on Greening Your Home at the Nature Center at Shaker Lakes, our local wildlife center. Eighty people were there. That was a lot of folks. It was cool to see such an enthusiastic turnout. The parking lot was overflowing. Next week we're hoping to carpool with some other folks. I had hoped the teacher, Jim LaRue, would cover the frost-protected shallow foundation information mentioned in the class blurb, but alas, he did not, and I didn't pipe up with my questions.

Completely unrelated, let me throw in here that I am not very patiently waiting for my friend Dave (Dave, I know you are reading this) to start his blog. We talked about starting blogs together in solidarity, and here I've taken the leap and he's still standing on the side of the pool in his Speedo. I kid! But seriously, Dave, let's go. I am calling you out, my friend.

Okay, I think that's enough randomness for one day. I will say that I tried to formulate a knitting-related post today and could not for the life of me get a decent shot of the fair isle wrap I am making using my web cam. See? I tried, and this shot was my best. Ick. No my living room is not that garish green, and the wrap looks way better than that in person.

I need to rip out and reknit (it's way too snug at the top), and I'm balking, because it involves taking measurements which are tricky to do myself, or figuring out whether I can sort the problem via blocking, which I doubt. The Professor will help me with measuring at least, but it's not his forte, so I haven't even asked for help yet. Oh, how I wish I had a nearby friend who was crafty and helpful. The people I know who could help me are all far far away. Sigh. I'm also still nursing my thumb, which I gashed open last week cleaning the toaster oven tray. I don't know how those knitting bloggers do it. Writing about and photographing knitting is a daunting task. I have newly increased (and it was considerable already) respect for you all.

Oh, and I will close by saying I just had my first almost-lost post-- the power went off on our street for a few seconds. But I only lost like one small edit because of autosaving. Felt like a rite of passage, though. Cool.

Some more substantial updates

2008-01-10T11:23:00.000-08:00

Frankly, I think I've got a bit of stage fright. I've told a few people I started this, and y'all might actually be reading it. Gasp. What to tell you about?

The other hitch is that there has been so much going on lately that I don't know where to start. The Professor (my sweetie) was out of town for a few days and I went gangbusters getting stuff done around the house, cleaning out the last of the paper that began accumulating 6 years ago when I moved to Atlanta to be with my mom when she was sick, catching up on laundry, some small doses of sociability, which included some knitting time (working on the charity blanket that I just can't seem to finish) and also watching my cool former cooking teacher, Christina Pirello, on TV thanks to Mary Ann Tivo-ing her appearance for me. It was pretty wacky to watch her using tomatoes and chocolate, which are pretty wide for macrobiotics, but of course it makes sense if she's trying to appeal to a national TV audience and come up with a menu for less than $40.

I'm reading a fantastic book called Write It Down, Make It Happen, by Henriette Anne Klauser, which is completely rocking my world. I've had a few experiences in the past of writing a wish list and magically everything on it coming true, so I know it works. I'm using the technique again now and already having fabulous results. I'm hoping to convince The Professor to use it to get his current NSF grant.

As for our progress on The Compact, I have bought only groceries and some take-out food (trying to wean myself) and one used book (a copy of the Klauser book as the one I'm reading now is the library's). The Professor broke the rules big time on Day 2, but I'll let him tell you about that. He's agreed to write a guest post as penance. There have been a few times already when I've thought, darn, I need a ... fill in the blank, but so far, every problem has been solved with a homemade solution.

I think that's all the updates I've got in me for today. Hope everything is well in your world.

My Daemon

2008-01-10T11:16:00.000-08:00

Okay, I feel like I'm cheating a little posting this thing, but it's my first chance to do something like this.

What do you think? Does this seem like me? I won't say what I think until I get some feedback from y'all. If you click on the picture, it gives you a little questionnaire. I don't know if the answers might change the shape of my daemon? It said 12 days before it settles into its final form. Fun!

We're going tomorrow to see the movie. Stay tuned for another review.

More moview reviews

2008-01-06T12:22:00.000-08:00

Two more movie reviews for y'all. I have been doing so much other stuff that I don't even know where to begin writing about it, but I will post more than movie reviews, I promise.

Roger Dodger was really quite enjoyable and charming, which was a bit of a surprise. I watched about a half hour of it one night and the rest a night or two later. I wasn't digging it after the first session, so I only put it in reluctantly to watch the rest. I like to finish stuff. I'm glad I gave it another go. The dialogue is stellar, the story is engaging, and once the nephew shows up, the malady from which Roger suffers (being a total player) actually takes on a whole new gleam of being endearing rather than repellent. Used for good, teaching young Nick how to meet girls, Roger's womanizing ways become less sinister and more entertaining. The best line: "You drink that drink! Alcohol has been a social lubricant for thousands of years. You think you're going to sit here tonight and reinvent the wheel? Please." Campbell Scott did a heck of a job. Some of his monologues were dizzying.

The Girl in the Cafe was another great pick. The use of color and line in the framing of every single shot was incredible. I wish I could have seen it on the big screen, but it was only a TV movie (HBO), what a waste. Because I am a mainstream media-phobe (see the word unplugged in the title of this blog), I didn't really know too much about the historical backdrop of the 2005 G8 conference and the Millennium Goals, so the movie really shook me up-- I called my sweetie quite rattled to see if he knew the current event status that the ending doesn't give away. Bill Nighy blew my mind with his performance. So vivid a character. Kelly Macdonald did a fine job as well. Love the accent. Took me right back to Glasgow.

Both of these movies made marvelous use of the cliffhanger ending. Marvelous. Especially the latter, because it will motivate you to action. The extras on both DVDs were impressive, too. Not the usual drivel of outtakes and deleted scenes. I recommend them both.

Movie Reviews

2008-01-03T11:11:00.000-08:00

Another way I shall endeavor to entertain you here, Dear Reader, is by providing little movie and book reviews about things I read and watch. I'm a fairly rabid consumer of DVD rentals from the local library since we turned off our cable (and didn't install an antenna for getting regular network) TV in August 2005. I didn't want to be sitting home without a job watching Oprah. Not to knock Oprah, but you know, I just didn't want that. Plus, the library is a 2-minute walk from our house, and you can just about anything you can imagine there for free free free. Can't beat that with a stick. I've been slowing down on books, but I hope to pick it up as I wean myself from the boob tube.

So, without further ado, my first review on this blog, of the movie The Last King of Scotland, starring Forest Whitaker and James McAvoy. Oh, wait, I should say, that I personally can't stand spoilers of any kind. I prefer to know as little as possible about movies when I go to see them. My ideal movie situation is just showing up, sitting down, and not even knowing what is playing. Tricky to accomplish in real life. So, I am going to try to give away as little as possible, so my reviews might be more just opinions and recommendations, but I will submit them for your perusal nonetheless.

I liked this movie. I didn't like the violence, but the acting was top notch, the cinematography was also very good, casting brilliant, story well-written and tight, and there were some surprisingly steamy scenes that were very well done. James McAvoy is utterly dreamy, so I will have to seek out other films/shows with him (hello, IMDB). Forest Whitaker was incredible. I didn't know much of the history that this movie covers (Idi Amin's rise to power and his subsequent corruption and brutality in Uganda), so it was also somewhat educational, despite the kernel of the story being entirely fictional.

I would recommend this film to those with a strong stomach or the willingness to watch a fair few scenes from behind your arm and/or muted. The extras on the DVD were especially interesting, because the film was made in Uganda, and many people there remember Amin's reign of terror none too fondly. I wonder how hard it must have been for them to see Amin come alive again in Forest Whitaker.

I also watched The Education of Shelby Knox last night. Eh. It was alright. I really wonder how the film came to be made at all, because it just wasn't too phenomenally interesting (the star is a bit of a drama queen, which almost gave it a reality show feel at times), and how did these filmmakers happen to connect with their subject? I wouldn't really recommend this film unless sex education in public schools is a big passionate issue for you.

Testing 1-2-3

2008-01-02T11:39:00.000-08:00

Well, hello, world! I've been thinking of starting a blog for a while, and now I guess I've gone and done it (I thought there would be a few more steps and I'd have chances to bail out, but this blogger thing pretty much plunks you in the deep end before you know it). I want to chronicle my quest to give up sugar (and maybe even TV), my love affair with yarn and knitting and all things fiber and textile (other mistresses include but are not limited to sewing, quilting, weaving, and spinning), the exciting adventures of designing and building an addition to our house in as green and eco-friendly a manner as we can manage, and my journey toward finding work that is both rewarding and remunerative. Oh, and my sweetie and I started off 2008 with a nice long chat about how we are planning to do The Compact in 2008; I'm sure that experiment will provide more than a little fodder for this blog. Think that's enough things to write about? Sound too all over the place? Welcome to my world. Okay, my tiny corner of the internet's virtual world. I'm so glad you're here.