Catchin' Up with the Camera

Alrighty, then. First off, some pictures of the progress Joe made last week...


Joe removed most of the plaster in the bathroom - you can see the lath, and underneath that, on the exterior wall, is brick that needs to be removed. Back in the day, brick was used as insulation and fire retardation. The problem is, it's pretty crappy insulation.

Joe, after I'd taken one too many pictures. Taking down plaster is nasty business. Lots of particulate you need to avoid breathing.

Now, on to what I did yesterday. The cats and I did plenty of this...

And I also did a good bit of this...

Most of my knitting yesterday was on Clappy, but I can't show you that. I'm almost done, though! Once I started drinking some wine, however, I thought it safer to work on something that wasn't too important. Top left is my entrelac experiment, bottom left is a cloverleaf pattern, but I think I'll rip it out - looks too funky on size 10s (the only needles I had available downstairs - alas, I was too lazy to just get up and get some others). On the right is a simple moss stitch. I had experimented with the Roman Stripe Pattern Stitch that I saw on Knitty Gritty not too long ago, but it didn't rock my world with this yarn.

Watched a few movies - Something New was a total chick flick, but it was very enjoyable. Plus, Simon Baker? Total hotness. Also watched The Lake House. Didn't want to like it, but I did. Of course, you totally have to suspend disbelief, and the story definitely has its holes. But a very good knitting movie. And, as much as people like to bash Keanu, he's really easy on the eyes.

Also got to see a CLASSIC yesterday that gave me nightmares as a kid. Still gives me the heeby-jeebies...

Today is pretty much more of the same, plus of course Oscar-watching. Call it the weekend of guilty pleasures.

Friday! Whoohoo!!!

You cannot beGIN to imagine the joy that is coursing through my veins right now (which of course is a sure sign that the Voldemort of my world will try to squash every last happy sparkle). But that doesn't matter - because I MADE IT.

Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday evenings I worked on finalizing the reports for my volunteer group so the transition to the new treasurer would be final. Wednesday night was my last meeting, and it was certainly a meeting from hell. Went from 7pm until about 10:30 and ended with people screaming and walking out. Let's just say this isn't the FIRST time a meeting has gone like that. But I handled it all in stride this time because...IT WAS MY FINAL ONE. Went home, had a stiff drink, and slept with a smile on my face.

Thursday night had a meeting in the Village - I'm on several local government committees, and it's a great way to learn more about your community and connect with people. I enjoy it. I'm a total joiner in that respect - I think I got it from my dad.

Work has been holy heckwads, but no matter how painful it may be today, it too will be OVER soon. Nine point five hours and counting. Going out to dinner with good friends, then Joe will be getting ready for a business trip.

WHICH MEANS...tomorrow I'm going to be what I like to call Productively Lazy. Meaning, I'll do chores, but only those that can be done while watching TV or movies. Laundry. Dishes. Opening mail. Paying bills. Picking up clutter in rooms that have TVs (in all honesty, those are the only rooms that have clutter...kind of...). And at some point on Saturday it'll be all about the knitting, the beer, the lap cats, and a chick flick movie. I'm working hard on Clappy but also having fun on my first entrelac experiment. I got some really pretty, on-sale cotton when I was last at my LYS, and I thought I'd try some dishrags of different stitch patterns. Then, when I got the recent Interweave Knits, I thought it would be a good time to just expose myself to the technique - because these socks totally rock.

Sorry no pictures - haven't even hooked the camera up to the PC to download lately. But this weekend is catchup time. Here's a totally random picture that I have at work...a few weeks too late. It was taken in our driveway a few years ago. We have a groundhog who lives under our house - I call him Homer. I haven't seen him come out yet this month, so I'm not so sure that an early spring is in the future. He's kind of handy to have around - he eats maple saplings and mulberries. But he also eats certain flowers and our neighbor's tomatoes. Me, personally - I kind of like having our own little marmot mascot.

Have a lovely weekend one and all!!!

Rough Week, Light on the Blogging...

Lots going on - will catch up later this week or weekend. Suffice it to say I'm just plain tuckered out. Weekend was work on the house and making and drinking beer. I'm resigning from my position at the volunteer organization tonight, so I've been preparing for that transition, and my paying job has been crazy as well.

Thanks for tuning in - will be starting beer socks and Mom Socks #2 soon. Almost in the home stretch of Clappy, which is driving Mom crazy because she wants to know what it is. You'll have to wait for Mother's Day, dearest!

Joe has an update...

Valentine's Day

Well, we survivied. But not without much whining on my part. Here's a pic that Joe took mid-day (while he was working from home, I might add):

Basically, it started as snow in the evening, switched to sleet/snow mix in the morning, became more icy mid-morning, then switched over to snow in the afternoon, stopping around 5pm with about a foot of accumulation. Add some winds into the mix, and you have the drifts that welcomed me this morning:

But it's all good. One of the amazing things (to this Southern gal, at least) is how quickly the roads get plowed once it stops. Granted, while it's still snowing, it's pretty crazy (like during my drive home yesterday), but I have to admit it was kind of fun plowing my badass truck up our hill that had about 6-7 inches of unplowed snow. At least I knew if I got stuck I could get out and walk.

We then went to 88 Charles Street, one of our favorite Montgomery restaurants, where they have the BEST Steak au Poivre (for Joe) and Gnocchi Bolognese (for me). Not to mention the bottle of decent Shiraz, excellent salad, and desserts (mmm...tartufo). After the white-knuckled driving, the constant stress during the day about getting home, and then such a lovely meal with my honey? I was out like a light at 9pm. Didn't even catch Lost live, which is a rarity. Then again, catching up this morning and starting the day with a decent Desmond fix wasn't too shabby. Mrrroww...

This sucks...

...donkey balls.

Observations and rants:

1) Northern folks need to learn how to take a snow day every once in a while.
2) I push paper, keep files, and calculate numbers for a manufacturing facility that doesn't make anything that saves people's lives or helps in an emergency. So why am I here?
3) I do love my badass truck. What I *DON'T* love are stupid people who think that 4-wheel-drive means drive-fast-in-snow-and-ice. I trust myself behind the wheel - I don't trust the soccer mom on the phone passing me in blinding precipitation. I will wave to you as I drive past the ditch you swerve into.
4) It's chili day at work. A half dozen crock pots in the conference room, cornbread, chips, cheese, and hot sauce await.

Plates!

Certainly, that's not something you hear/read often...BUT...

This is what we ordered when we were at the Rhinebeck Crafts Fair back in October. We ordered a set of plates from these lovely folks (scroll down to the 2nd name under Ceramics - Pam & Greg). The small plates arrived a little while ago, and the big plates came tonight.

Uh...YAY!


As most of you know, Joe and I are pottery whores. We don't care much for china, crystal, or anything fru-fru. But pottery? Yeah. You betcha. We're there...

Now we have the "good china" - Yay! Care to come up and eat with us? :)

Umm...

Help?

I'm surrounded by WIPs!

My life is filled with unfinished things right now...

Here's the half-finished back panel of my sweater. I'm kind of doing the striping however the mood strikes me - I just have to keep good notes to make the front match up.

Making Joe a sock from my SP9 Spoiler's sock yarn. It's my "take anywhere" project. It also reminds me that I have to get back to the LYS soon and get me some more small needles (I have plenty in 3-5, not so much with 1s and 2s). After I get more of those, I'm all about the socks-in-progress.

A suprise for my mother. I don't think she reads this blog much, but just in case, I'll speak in code to my knitting friends...it's often refered to as "Clappy." I'm on the 5th of 12 repeats in the straight row section. It's A LOT of fun, but this particular yarn (Lorna's Laces Bullfrogs & Butterflies - Mother Lode colorway) tends to split a bit. Good thing I have dull bamboo needles.

Oh, goody! I actually finished something! Purple socks for my sister-in-law. I made it with Patton's Classic Merino, because her feet get really cold and I wanted a nice thick sock. Standard sock pattern - k1p1 ribbing for the cuff, k3p1 for the rest. They always knit up nicely and quickly.

And the biggest WIP - our bathroom. Due to the pipe-freezing incident earlier last week, we realized that this was a good time to move this project up the list of priorities. This weekend we've been gutting the room, and here are some observations (both past and present - corresponding to the numbers in the picture):

1) The original siding of this section of the house wasn't removed - not typically a problem, but Mr. Bonehead basically ripped up certain parts of the siding (really sloppily) to accomodate the electrical boxes.
2) Just to the right of this pipe is a singed 2x4 - Mr. Buttmonkey soldered the pipe fittings AFTER installation and caught the wood on fire. He also put up drywall immediately afterwards - there were singe marks on that as well.
3) Original brick "insulation" still in the walls
4) Shower flooring had no support around the drain, so every time you stood in it, more pressure was applied to the pipe fitting, causing it to leak in the pantry below. We haven't been able to use that shower for several years.
5) Toilet plumbed to hot water. Something we learned to live with until we were able to redo the bathroom. But still - Mr. Crudmuncher was responsible for that as well.
6) See something there that doesn't belong? Pipes, electrical wiring, and no "blue board" behind the shower? We're very lucky that we didn't have any leaks, shorts, or fires.

And that's our little part of the universe this weekend. Now I'm going to pay bills and watch some DVDs in the background. I picked out a good selection - The Professional, Reservoir Dogs, and Fight Club. I'm not in a violent mood today, am I?

Day Off!

Yeah, I was so totally ADD this week I figured I just needed to take a day before heck broke loose with the audit next month. So I went around looking at sample bathrooms (we're gutting ours this weekend), Freecycled some items, and now I'm just hangin' out with the kitties.

Upstate pics are here.

Hope you have a lovely weekend!

Gettin' the Pics Up...

Okay - so long overdue it's embarrassing...

Thanksgiving pics are here.

DC / Alexandria pics are here.

More to come. After I get some sleep...

100th Post and Catching Up

Wow. 100 posts. I'm really full of myself, aren't I...

Let's, see...the last few days:

Friday - Great day, feelin' good, get through the work day then realize it started bleepin' snowing, and I have the skateboard car today (vs the badass truck), and of course tonight I have to go to the grocery store because we're going upstate for the weekend. Crazy bread-and-milk freaks causing a Friday night traffic jam at Shop-Rite.

Saturday - Yay! Going upstate with the Connors! Clam steam, games, much food and wine, and *I* wasn't the sloppy drunk this time! Pictures to be posted soon.

Sunday - Darn those Connors and their evil alcohol ways! Sleepy. Cold. Very sleepy. Drive back, crash, bail on a potentially groovy Super Bowl party. Watch the game, feel "eh" overall about the commercials, then crash again.

Monday - Cold. Cold. Cold. Cats clinging to us like velcro. Good news - all the work that we'd done the last few years paid off with the pipes not freezing in the crawl space. Bad news - we have a Death-Star-reactor-sized column at the core of our home that allows really cold air to freeze the pipes INSIDE THE HOUSE. Downstairs has water, upstairs does not. Joe balances precariously on a ladder that's on top of stairs in order to insulate pipes. Yay Joe - no one has to take a sponge bath in the kitchen.

Tuesday - Cold. Have ADD at work. Cold.

Which Word Confuses You?

Here's a hint:

If, after more than two years of volunteering my precious spare time to basically sit in a room with multiple Type A personalities and mentally bash my head against a brick wall, and during that time what was once a passion to help became a slowly festering sore of hostility towards anything involving that worthy cause, after countless phone calls interrupting my paid work day for ridiculous reasons, after staring at the ceiling night after night, my stomach in knots about the responsibilities that I have placed on myself and that others have shoved in my direction, after putting myself and my husband farther down the list of priorities for far too long, if after all that I decide that I need to step down...

Calling me a half-dozen times within twenty-four hours of my emotional and painful resignation? Asking me to reconsider, not because you need me, but because you don't want a certain other individual to be involved? Bad-mouthing other people and complaining about what's going on...?

Is NOT helping your cause. It only makes me realize I made the right damn choice.

Guess Where We're Going?

Yup. Tuscany 2008. Wanna join us?

And am I a total knerd to have already found out there's a yarn store in the nearby town?

That's My Girl!!!

This is my neice Jordan (well, the back of her), scoring her first three-point shot in JV basketball. She's also hit an in-the-park-grand-slam on her softball team. She totally rocks.

She might be my sister's daughter, but she's my girl. :) HAAY, Jordan! We miss you!!!

Stealing a pic from my SP9 Spoilee...

The Hedgie has found a good home...

...Sigh...

That's what it's all about. :)

HAAAY to my SP9 Spoilee!

Hello there, Lara - it's been such fun spoiling you! I hope you have enjoyed it. According to Fedex, you should be getting your #3 package by Saturday (and in that package is the big reveal), so...well...here I am!

It's been so fun and inspiring reading your blog - you have done such wonderful things - and with four kids! It's amazing you're sane, much less churning out such beautiful work!

To answer an earlier question that I didn't mention before - yes, that's your Lady Eleanor on the CD - I snagged the photo from your blog and enlarged it for the CD cover. The colors you chose are simply gorgeous. I don't know if you've taken a listen to the CD yet, but I hope you like it. The only thing the songs have in common is a sense of peace or calm - if not in words, then in music. Of course, if your sense of peace and my sense of peace are completely different, you can just use it as a coaster and not tell me about it! ;)

Thanks for being so nice and responsive in your emails - I cannot stress how much fun this has been. The Inca cotton, the stitchmarkers, the felted pumpkin, and the yarn in your final package were all purchased at the Rhinebeck Sheep and Wool Festival. If you ever feel the need to travel East and indulge in your yarn habit, you are welcome - we live only about an hour away from the fairgrounds. And my husband makes killer margaritas!

Thanks to your inspiration - I have now started my first sweater! The picture doesn't do the colors justice - the "purple" is more of a winey maroon, and the orange is filled with streaks of that same wine color. I also got this at the Fest, from a lady who raises sheep in Maine. It's a very simple tunic pattern, but I figured I'd best start simple and just get that first sweater under my belt, so to speak. Nevermind the turquoise stitch-markers...

Anyhow, thanks again for being so wonderful. I look forward to reading more about your accomplishments in the future!

Caught in the Act...

This is our beloved Coz, with his favorite pasttime, the water fountain. We keep it on one of those timers to only be running at certain times of the day. Otherwise, there would be a puddle to clean up every night.

Yes, our Water Kitty likes to stick his WHOLE ARM in the water stream then lick it off.

This is the cat who likes bathtub faucets, stealing socks from drawers, and drools when his tummy is rubbed.

Freakin' psycho...

But Dewd!

I figured that if 100 degrees was good, then 500 would be better!

Fffffffftttttt....yeah, that's what I call a house fire...

Righteous.

'S'bout Dang Time...

I don't know about you, but if I was three years old and refused to do something my parents told me to do...? I'd have been hit on the head with a shoe, had my mouth washed out with soap, then been duct-taped into the damn seat.

Yes, I know, the rules are different nowadays. But Daayumm.

"The father said his family would never fly AirTran again." Thank you AirTran - you have my business for life.

MUCH better...

Made with Cascade 220 and Fun Fur.

You know, some folks are kind of snooty about novelty yarns, but I just can't help but feel giggly and happy when I make one of these. They're quick, fun, and if you fill them enough with the poly-fill, they bounce really well. How can you not love that?

Joe's bottling up the beer today, and I'm finishing up my SP9 final package. Have a lovely rest of YOUR weekend!

Bad Hedgie...BAD!...

...or, why I'm going straight to Achhe-Eee-Double-Hockey-Sticks...

You see, I had this grand plan of making a Hedgie for my SP9 pal. Done in a favorite color, maybe holding toothpicks-as-knitting-needles...something homemade and fun. And because hedgies are one-size-fits-all, I figured this would be a good idea. After all, I'd made about a half dozen, right?

Well, you live, and you learn.

It seems that even though I have experienced many different felting happenings, I haven't lived them all. I'd been using Fun Fur for every hedgie thus far, with 100% success. I ASSUMED (yes, I know what it makes out of you and me, you freak) that the Bernat Disco, since it had similar wash/care instructions, would be just as good. And sparkly, even.

Well, somewhere between now-I-have-a-non-agitating-washer-so-it-takes-longer and sparkly-things-don't-do-well-with-hot-water, I discovered a problem.

I'm not sure if you can see the problem, so I'll give you a close-up...

The sparklies are okay, I guess, but there's a lot of matted darkness going on. Like dreads gone horribly wrong. After the hedgie dried, I immediately thought of two things: Damien from South Park and Quato from Total Recall. You simply cannot understand how gross this fur looks in person. So there was only one thing to do - Make the Hedgie from Hell...

(cue Carmina Burana O Fortuna)

Heh. Heh-heh. Bwahahahahahahahahahaha......

Beer and Stash

Having grown up in a town where I had to drive 10 minutes to get to my friends' homes, living in a small village still tickles the hell out of me. One of our favorite haunts (within stumbling distance, of course), is Copperfield's - a great little pub that offers many beers, good food (even some veggie-friendly-non-bar-stuff), and great people. Well, mostly great people. Just don't go on a weekend when all the yuppie drinkers descend on our little town and the overflow from the martini bar down the street gets annoying...

Last night was no different. Tim, the Irish-whiskey-expert barkeep, took good care of us while we babbled with friends and the local building inspector. Copperfield's is where Joe and I go when we want the Best Buffalo Chicken Finger Wrap Ever, a few beers, and usually some venting about jobs and/or people. Last night, I just didn't feel like cooking, and I couldn't get to the store because IT'S SNOWING (though not much), and people in NY are just as crazy about bread-and-milk shopping as people everywhere else when it snows. So I don't shop on snow days. Crazy freakin' people.

Anyhow, one of our many tipsy conversations was about stash. Joe had been reading our Snarky friend's post about the "movement" in 2007 to knit from stash. "Why wouldn't you knit from your stash?" he asked. I explained it to him in terms he would understand:

"In your shop, you have planks of lumber in the rafters. You have black walnut and cherry for special pieces yet to be determined. You have several tons of maple curing in the shed. You have plywood, leftover mahogony porch flooring, and siding up the wazoo. And yet, you're putting in an order with Ferris for more blocks of wood to build chair seats. If you came across a good deal for some tiger maple, you'd grab it in a heartbeat. You're either buying these for projects now or in the future. But you're not making furniture or repairs out of what you have in your shop NOW."

{long pause}

"Oh."

And with that, we called Tim over for another round of beers.

I'm weak, I admit it...

I had to run a few errands at lunch today - go to the bank, go by Michael's and pick up more stuffing for...er...a final SP9 surprise...that rhymes with ledgedog...when lo-and-behold I find myself in front of the skimpy-yet-sometimes-interesting Michael's book selection. And what do you think flung itself at me and begged me to provide it with a loving home?

Yup. And I didn't even have my gift certificate with me, so it was totally frivolous spending. But I have to explain:

- I only have one other pattern book (Big Girl Knits), besides any SnB or Yarn Harlot items

- I have many one-skeins that need a purpose

- As much as I loooove me some sock knitting, I really need to work on other skills as well, and some of the items in this book would make lovely gifts

See? SEE? I don't have a problem. I have REASONS.

Heeeeeere's Joe!

I guess my hubby got a little tired of me writing an "us" blog from a "me" point of view. That, and all the knitting. So he finally got around to making his own. I'm lovin' the logo. Yay, Joe!

Joe's Making a Chair!

I'm sorry ladies, but I'm married to the handsomest, funniest, coolest man there is. Joe's Christmas present was a 6-day class in making Windsor chairs from a local couple we met at the Rhinebeck Crafts Fair.

He's making the chair you see in the background. On Saturday and Sunday he worked on the back, some spindles, and this is the seat.

After the course he brings home...a chair!

Yup - my husband is da bomb.

Sorry no knitting posts - what is currently on the needles is kind of a surprise and almost done. More on that later.

SP9 GOODIES!!!

OOOOOH! Today was a day filled with errands - go get cat food, take recyclables in, and pick up a package at the post office. We had been expecting something that we had ordered, so I just assumed...WRONG! Lookee-lookee!!!

Clockwise, starting from noonish:
- 2 bags of WW candies - in my FAVORITE flavors! My SP9 spoiler was very thoughtful in not giving me really tempting terrible things. I'm not a strong person when it comes to food, and she really paid attention to my blog, so THANK YOU!
- A copy of Knitting Under the Influence by Claire LaZebnik. I had seen this on Amazon, and it looks right up my alley. Another winner!
- A set of Knit Klips to help with seaming up my first sweater. How. Cool. I didn't know these existed (tells you how much I know), and I'm so glad these are now in my grubby little hands. They will definitely go to good use.
- An absolutely STUNNING set of ebony and sterling silver earrings from Berit Designs. They are simply exquisite - exactly the kind of thing I would want to treat myself with.
- 2 skeins of Lane Cervinia Forever Jacquard in beautiful jewel tones of reds, greens, and blues. These socks will be MINE! And machine washable!
- 2 skeins of Regia Jacquard in the most calming natural tans, grays, and blues. Again, socks for me. I ain't wastin' this on NOBODY else (said with a snap and a head tilt). :) Also machine washable!
- The blue velvety looking thing is a Turbo Pouch! For storing my circulars! Oh-boy-oh-boy how I need that! I have straight needle storage a-plenty, but my circulars are all over the place. Yay!
- A yummy giant candycane...and...
- Stitchmarkers. Gorgeous stitchmarkers. Lovely, yummy stitchmarkers...

...THAT SHE MADE HERSELF!!!

Edited to add: I totally omitted one great gift that she sent, because by then end of this post I was kind of on a yarn high. But I'm also getting a subscription to Interweave Knits! I have always wanted that holy-grail-of-knitting-magazines. I hear so many wonderful things about it, and I can't wait! Yay!!!

Thank you SOOO much, my dear Secret Pal. You definitely hit a homerun, and I'm very happy to know you. I know your holidays were more eventful than you'd like, but I hope 2007 brings you much peace, happiness, and....quiet time for knitting.

Again, thank you, from the bottom of my heart.

Pammy!!!

It's hard to believe that these numbers even come close to our age anymore. It seems like just yesterday you and Justin were announcing the impending arrival of your sweet little boy. You had just purchased a mini-van, and we were on the hill near Jane and Steven's house, all of us terribly suspicious during a drive to the lake when you finally made it known.

I had the honor of your standing up with me on a very special day that not only included the man of my dreams but margaritas and a hottie bartender named Raoul. Or Rafael. Or Raymundo.

I will forever treasure the times that we threw caution, directions, and limited-knowledge-of-manual-transmissions to the wind and found ourselves on the paradise that is Sapelo. Drunken bike rides, rum-induced confessions, and an infamous-and-lasting hookup were all just gravy on those amazing trips.

You even talked a younger and stupider version of myself into a very public performance that scared the beejeesus out of me.

How did we stay sane during these times? Oh, yeah. That's right. We giggled a lot.

Sometimes we didn't giggle. But we always had fun. Or at least we had music, and of course making fun of others.

It's overwhelming to think that all of this started thirty-ish years ago when all I remember is a tricycle with red wheels, digging to China, and a cute blond boy named Mitch.

Happy Birthday, Pam - even though this might not be your happiest of days this year, please know that you are wrapped in my love and admiration and respect. No one could have predicted that we would be close friends this long, but I certainly predict that when you're twice this age that I'll still be embarrassing you with old pictures. :)

(Pam on back right, me directly to her left, and our dearest Amy in the stunning red dress)

Much love and many obnoxious hugs to my dear friend on her special day.

Dear Idiot: We Hate You

Actually, I don't think hate is strong enough. Loathe. Abhor. Despise. Wish you nothing but pain and suffering for eternity. Of course, there's only one poor excuse for a human who would elicit such strong feelings: Cracolici - the turdface previous owner of our home.

Earlier this week, I noticed that some of our kitchen cabinets were leaning forward a bit. So we thought this would be a good weekend to see what's going on and correct the problem.

This is how our morning began. We took down one of the cabinets and found that the screws Mr. Bunghole used to install the cabinets were about an inch too short.

Between the drywall and the laths (slats that plaster is put on), 3 inch screws aren't long enough to sink into the studs. After 6 years of holding heavy plates and bowls, the cabinets started pulling away from the wall. Joe went into his shop, got some 4 inch screws, and went to work. The plan was to just replace all old screws with longer ones. Strange thing, though - we put the longer screws into this one cabinet, and it still wasn't holding. Meaning - THE SCREWS WEREN'T ANYWHERE CLOSE TO THE STUDS. The only thing to do, then, is take down all the cabinets, find the studs, and put them back up properly.

Here was a fun find - this glob is dried construction adhesive. Mr. Assmunch realized he had some problems, and he "fixed" it by filling some of the gaps with glue.

Here's a good look at what Joe has been doing today. Note the hole in the wall (was the stove vent) and the misc items we've had to take out of the cabinets.

And this is what my dining room looks like now. Boxes and piles of glasses, plates - some even overflowed into the living room. My house looks like a yard sale.

This is the way you find studs in an older home (studfinders generally don't work due to the extra crap in the walls): you cut a strip out of the wallboard, brush away the plaster crumblings, and you find your studs. I've marked in yellow where the studs are. The red circles are where the screws were. One out of every 6 or so screws was in line with a stud, but due to the short screws even THOSE weren't effective. Bad aim, or just not giving a shit? You be the judge.

And that, ladies and gentlemen, is the reason for this new level of hatred.

Happy New Year...ish

Yup - been a non-blogging kinda folk recently. Must have something to do with going back to work. Spent most of NY Day recovering from NY Eve with the Connors. Drank some beer, had lasagna, drank some wine, played some games, drank some wine, watched E pull out his tooth, drank some wine, watched Love, Actually, watched the ball drop, and drank some bubbly. Good times, good times.

I must say I've been pretty much on track since I returned to REALITY - only gained 2.2 over the past two-and-a-half weeks. So I'm back on track and working hard to stick to a schedule so I can (a) prepare healthy meals and (b) exercise. I won't be giving WW bloggy updates unless there's something universally celebratory, which I hope will happen more frequently now that I've got my chit back together.

And so, I leave you with this, another stolen blog subject from my Snarky friend...

5 Random ipod Shuffles:
Mr. Roboto - Styx
Dance Panels, ballet: Introduction - Moderato (Tempo di Valzer) Espressivo un poco rubato - Aaron Copeland
New Lace Sleeves - Elvis Costello
FM - Steely Dan
What I Be - Michael Franti & Spearhead

This could mean several things:
1) I'm neurotic
2) I really need to make playlists
3) I should never admit I put Styx on my ipod
4) All of the above

Holidays 2006 - Day Eight

Ah, yes. The end of 2006 and all the baggage that went with it. Tonight we are celebrating with our good friends, the Connors, who also happened to be the parents of the coolest kid we know. Games, movies, food, and wine will be had a-plenty.

Wishing you a noisy, fun, memorable New Year. Drive carefully, or better yet - not at all - there be CRAZY people on the roads tonight...

Holidays 2006 - Day Seven

Well, not much happening today. We are thoroughly unmotivated, sitting back with a few beers and watching Mega Builders on Discovery Channel and being thoroughly impressed at the amount of rebar used on a bridge project.

Knit-wise, I've started my sister-in-law's purple socks, as well as My First Sweater. I'm also finishing up my SP9 project, but I have a feeling that I'm going to keep it and make her a new one. Long story that I'll discuss after the secret is out. Let's just say sometimes my learning curve is a bit longer than normal.

In a little bit I'm going to make some sauce for the lasagna we're bringing over to the Connor house tomorrow night, but otherwise I'm just trying to savor this day. Actually, I'm surprised I'm even out of my pajamas.

Holidays 2006 - Day Six

Wow, working one day out of ten really takes a lot out on a gal. Bwah! Today was kind of a weird day, for a holiday. Had to take Coz to the vet (he's a snotty boy - literally - who needs some antibiotic help). Then I had to attend the wake of a coworker's wife. It was very, very sad. Now I'm back home and trying to focus on happy things. Like having some wine. And celebrating my new, clean Bastard Room!

Why is it called the Bastard Room, you ask? Well, it was billed as one of the five bedrooms in our house (uh, so was our closet). But it's barely big enough to hold maybe a single bed and one of those small kid desks. Maybe. I can ALMOST touch two opposing walls at the same time. Anyhow, when we moved in, since we have no closets, a lot of crap got shoved into this room. So it became the Bastard Room - the room that has just about everything in it. My goal for the holidays was to finish cleaning it out and make it a total craft-and-exercise room. Voila!


Clockwise, from noonish: a portrait of my great-great-great grandfather, a self-portrait of my mom, my DVD-TV Christmas present from Joe with Dead Like Me season two playing, misc cross-stitchings that have no other home, part of my treadmill, my stash which might look pathetic but is really too big (large basket is hidden), cabinetry from our laundry room while that room gets a new look (plus a select few stuffed animals that I can't put in the attic where they would surely suffer certain death), and - hmmm...what is that? Need a close-up?

Ahhh, yes. My new swift (courtesy of Joe) and ball winder (courtesy of Awesome Sharon). Took me a few tries to get it right, but here's my new sweater yarn, rapidly becoming ballish. Yay! Joe wasn't too thrilled - only because he was preoccupied - making beer. Or as we say - BEEEEYAH!
So now while Joe and his buds go to the beer supply store for stuff to finish the beer in the next week or so, I'm going up to the Bastard Room, winding and wining, and watching more of DLM s3. Life certainly does not suck.