Manahmaknits

A very busy weekend

2009-05-26T17:34:00.004-04:00

So I've decided to make the move to Charleston. I've got this crazy idea of actually living with the man I'm married to. Novel concept, I know. Can you believe it will have been 2 years this August when he moved to SC? Time flies.

In order to do that, there are certain, long neglected things that must be done in order to get it on the market. I'm fixing it up in the (probably) vain hope that if the house looks good, it will sell faster and for a higher price. In this market, it's hard to tell. I'll certainly keep you posted.

The upstairs hall bath is finally finished. Here's a pic of the nice tile floor I laid down a few weeks ago (see my marble threshold and everything!)

And here's a bit wider shot. I'm standing in the hall, so that's about as far back as I can go. It's a small bathroom. I now have a lovely upstairs guest bathroom. Better yet, none of the plumbing leaks even though I installed it.
I put the tile down and painted the walls in the downstairs bath too. Pics on that when I get the vanity and toilet installed again.

In other news, I discovered that a nice little birdie laid eggs in the fern on my porch. We'll see what hatches, I'm betting baby birds, not platypuses or anything. It's going to be interesting when the some guys come to paint the porch and put in some landscaping and stuff.

A long time away...

2009-05-03T09:46:00.003-04:00

I've neglected my blog for some time now. Sorry about that, this year has had a rough start for me and my family.

As Mother's day approaches, I feel it's time to take the blog out of its hiatus and post anew. Mother's day used to be a good time of year, a chance to honor the woman who gave me life. To be perfectly frank, now it just brings up memories of what I have lost and sad for what I took for granted.

My much loved mom died December 12 after a long decline following a stroke in April 2006. My dad kept her at home for 2+ years after a trial of unsuccessful rehabilitation. She was bedridden and slipped away from us a fragment at a time until the only thing remaining was her gentleness. In all that time, my dad kept her from going into a nursing home and she never once had a serious bedsore. My dad is a lot of things (eccentric to say the least) but he took great care of my mom.

My mom was a tiny person but she had the most incredible spirit and courage. My brother and I are better people because of her presence in our lives. She worked way harder than she had to and denied herself many little pleasures so that we could have a better education and have things she didn't when she was a kid. She struggled with depression and had a problem with not throwing anything away. That being said, what I will remember most is how she encouraged me and my brother to do and be our very best. She was not perfect, but she loved us with her whole heart. She truly believed in us and loved us even when we were awful. She was my cheerleader, my secret keeper, and most of all, my best friend. I miss her and feel the loss of her presence in my life every day.

Six weeks after my mom died, my dad decided to go skydiving. He declined the strong recommendation of the course instructor and jumped solo the first time. Immediately upon exiting the airplane, he realized he had made a grave mistake. He landed in a horse pasture with his chute tangled in an overhead line. Luckily, he only suffered compression fractures in his back and nearly broke his right foot clean off (literally). I say luckily, because he really could have just as easily died. So after 2 months of being once again house bound and dependant on me and his neighbors to get his mail and groceries, he's just now able to drive. After getting surgery to get the pins out of his ankle, he's planning on taking a sailing class so he can charter a boat around the Gulf of Mexico for a few days. *sigh* At least his pilot's license has lapsed and he won't be in the air. The man is *go* all the time.

One week after his accident, my house was burgled while I was not home (thank God!). The jerks took my computers, one of which was fairly new and the other which was 10 years old. I got to thank them for taking the old one, because I wasn't sure what to do with it since I don't think they want those things in landfills. Sometime during the break in, they hurt one of my cats too. After 2 months of being in a splint, she's better and putting weight on her foot and I hope she will make a full recovery without (very expensive) surgery. And by the way, I now have a nice, loud alarm system, thankyouverymuch. And I've only set it off accidentally a few times, which is good if you know me.

So now that everything has settled down, I'm working on the house and trying to get it ready to go on the market. I'm hoping to move to Charleston to try something abjectly normal: I'm going to live with my husband again. Novel concept, eh? Besides, the drive to Charleston is getting old. I'll try to blog more frequently too.

Moving forward and living the best, happiest, fullest life is the best way I can think of to honor my mom. I think she would be proud. Thanks for everything you have given me, mom. You're the best.

Passing of a Noodle

2008-11-29T13:42:00.003-05:00

This is a sad post, folks, though many of you will think I'm silly.

The day finally came that my little rat, Noodle, could go no further. She had cancer and we knew that the time to say goodbye would come soon. We had her put down last evening. She died peacefully with me holding her and skritching her little noggin to the end.

It's funny how a creature that is reviled by most folks could be so sweet and loving. Noodle was an exemplary rat who never bit and never knew a stranger. Her fondness for peanut butter (she pronounced it pinda budder) was legendary. She was my first rat, and will always hold a special place in my heart.Give a rat a chance, you won't be sorry. Visit the GARMCA website if you're interested.

Adventures in Self Improvement

2008-11-07T18:32:00.005-05:00

Anyone who knows me knows that I am always up for a good laugh. Especially when it involves laughing at myself. So who am I to deprive you all from sharing in my latest adventure in economy self improvement? After all, I know that all my good friends out there will give me encouragement and loving comments and will not make fun of me for doing something so profoundly stupid as what I have just done.

Right? Yeah, right. Do I know you guys or what? You might want to not be drinking anything as you read further because this is good.

So today I ran a bunch of errands. Boring stuff really, get the oil changed, mail some stuff to Seattle, car tags, blah, blah, blah. On my way home, I took a wild hair (no pun intended, but you see where this is going) and went to Sally's to buy a nail file and pumice stone. I perused the store and couldn't help noticing all the neato ways one could improve your looks on a budget. This is heady stuff for someone who dosen't wear makeup and can barely match socks in the morning. I started noticing all the nifty colors you could dye your hair and struck up a conversation with the nice lady with blue hair (and I mean blue as in punk not blue as in old) about going a few shades lighter than mine. She helped me pick out a nice shade a bit lighter than my own color as I was going for SUBTLE, and not OVERT color.

My first clue should have been that she had blue hair (wink wink, nudge nudge). But she seemed nice, used big words appropriately, and assured me that it was SO easy, and so I went for it.

Wanna see? Of course you do. Here it is:

I promise this picture does not really do justice to my new color. My hair is now a lighter shade of blondey red. Subtle it's not. More like I doused my hair in lemon juice and sat in the sun like when I was 10. I suppose it's not bad, but I'm sure glad I didn't wait the whole 30 minutes or you would have heard about a certain blue-haired lady being snatched baldheaded.

I think I'll go for a bit darker next time, or perhaps pony up the cash and have an actual professional do it. Boy is this going to be fun when my roots show up. Maybe next time I want to change the color of something, I'll dye some yarn or something.

Ruthless attack on Corian sink-film at 11

2008-09-15T16:25:00.005-04:00

Police are searching this evening for a large rock that ruthlessly attacked a Corian sink this morning causing catastrophic damage. The angelfish on scene said that the rock was removed from the fish tank and taken to the kitchen by a shadowy figure who brings food every day but rarely takes the rocks for cleaning. Shortly after the rock was taken to the kitchen, the angelfish said a crash was heard followed by unrepeatable expletives and wailing.

The rock is described as white with a fine coat of algae. If seen, please do not approach it as it should be considered wet and slippery and handled only whilst paying close attention and using two hands. This photo gives a representation of the culprit and is not an exact likeness. This is a picture of the sink shot shortly after the attack. Look away now if you are squeamish, folks. This is a horrific injury and not for the faint of pocketbook.Damage to the sink is said to be life-threatening and very expensive. The homeowner, Ms. Butterfingers*, swears never to buy Corian products again as she thinks that something should not cost more than 5 times it's original purchhase price to repair. She is relieved, however, as the damage is not nearly as expensive as what the orange and blue box people led her to believe in her initial fact-finding mission. For that, she is most grateful. Ms. Butterfingers hopes that others will learn from her experience and not be tempted to purchase anything other than stainless steel for their kitchen sink, no matter how pretty other materials may be.

*names have been changed to protect the distracted who should have been eating chocolate or knitting instead of cleaning the fish tank.

Cloning Boogers

2008-08-05T19:10:00.005-04:00

I swear I am not making this up. You can't make this stuff up.

"It's a miracle!" McKinney repeatedly shouted Tuesday when she saw the cloned Boogers for which she paid $50,000. "Yes, I know you! You know me, too!" McKinney said joyfully as she hugged her snuggly baby Boogers.

Imagine. $50,000 for cloned Boogers. Heck, I'll give her some of mine for the bargain price of $5 each! Anyone in? Let's all mail her our Boogers! We could bury her house in them! Anyone in?

Of course, there's always a catch. You can read the whole article here. Sweet little sleepy, cuddly Boogers. Awwww.....

Bathroom!

2008-08-01T10:52:00.005-04:00

The house is coming along nicely. The flooring where the termites ate my nice wood is replaced.

The downstairs has been sanded. It was lots of fun watching the floor guy do the sanding. He's not hard to look at, but I didn't think it would be nice to post a pic of him. You'll have to use your imagination. Think muscles, lots of them.

Ahem. Back to the post.

And the best news of all! I found (after calling nearly every tile store in the southeast, one in New Jersey, and one in Virginia) the perfect tile for our bathroom. It's a basketweave pattern that is much in keeping with the age of the house. I've always wanted it for a house and now we've got it! There's no sink in there yet, but the husbeast says the toilet and tub are installed and the new bathtub faucet/shower came yesterday, so I'd say the place has potential to one day be a real, functioning bathroom! Feel free to drop by and ask to use it.

Here's a shot of it grouted. We opted for a light gray grout to make the pattern show up without being too dark.

My search for the right kind of tub shower/faucet attachment took me far and wide. I finally landed at a place called Moluf's in Charleston. They have the most amazing toilet. I'll have to get pictures and tell you all about it later.

2008-07-08T13:36:00.002-04:00

Everyone else is doing it, so I guess I will too.

What Laurie Means

You are relaxed, chill, and very likely to go with the flow.
You are light hearted and accepting. You don't get worked up easily.
Well adjusted and incredibly happy, many people wonder what your secret to life is.

You are usually the best at everything ... you strive for perfection.
You are confident, authoritative, and aggressive.
You have the classic "Type A" personality.

You are a very lucky person. Things just always seem to go your way.
And because you're so lucky, you don't really have a lot of worries. You just hope for the best in life.
You're sometimes a little guilty of being greedy. Spread your luck around a little to people who need it.

You are wild, crazy, and a huge rebel. You're always up to something.
You have a ton of energy, and most people can't handle you. You're very intense.
You definitely are a handful, and you're likely to get in trouble. But your kind of trouble is a lot of fun.

You tend to be pretty tightly wound. It's easy to get you excited... which can be a good or bad thing.
You have a lot of enthusiasm, but it fades rather quickly. You don't stick with any one thing for very long.
You have the drive to accomplish a lot in a short amount of time. Your biggest problem is making sure you finish the projects you start.

You are friendly, charming, and warm. You get along with almost everyone.
You work hard not to rock the boat. Your easy going attitude brings people together.
At times, you can be a little flaky and irresponsible. But for the important things, you pull it together.

What's" Your Name's Hidden Meaning?

Interesting how a lot of this is true. Except I'm not the best of everything. And I'm not frequently incredibly happy. Especially now, with the husband 350 miles away, my dad fraying mightily, and several other things which constantly demand my attention. Oh well, no whining. That's just the way things are right now.

My new house. Wherein there is mass destruction.

2008-06-17T17:22:00.009-04:00

Termites. I hates them. They eat things they should not and ignore the things they should. Because of them, this is what is in my living room right now. Bastiches. Did I mention that I hate them? I'll stop now before I start spiraling.
Seriously folks, if you haven't updated your termite bond, do so. Termites are teh suk. You don't want this happening to your home. See where those nails are sticking out? There used to be a 2"x 10" piece of lumber here. Now it's confetti. And the board it's nailed in to? Confetti too. Except that the party was had by bugs and not me.
What? That looks expensive? Why yes, yes it is. Thanks for noticing. When you fix something like this you should get a big, big bag of money and just hold it out to contractors repeating these words: "Go ahead, help yourself. No really, it's fine, I'll just pull more out of my butt. Take more, please! Don't be shy!" Until you pass out. I'm almost there!

But enough of painful activities. I have a new friend. This new friend is the bomb. And if you don't have one, you should because it's loads of fun. It's called a reciprocating saw or sawsall. And it does. Saws all, that is. I will love him and squeeze him and hug him and feed him and call him George.

This is what my subfloor looked like after termites and before George and I went to work.

There. Isn't that better? Cheapest therapy I've ever had. Highly recommended. Zippity, zippity. The reason I needed a reciprocating saw is that they don't build 'em like they used to. This is an example of the beams under my house. I hear they are in the attic too. 6"x12" solid timbers! Oy! The nice peoples are going to come tomorrow and put in new wiring because it currently looks like someone tied Medusa's hair together with a rat's nest poured glue on it and called it a day. No kidding, almost everything is original. That makes the wiring 73 years old. Say it with me: Scary, yeah.

Someday, it will be a nice house. At least, that's what they tell us. Donations are welcome. If you don't have money, you could also just come by and point out how we're doing it wrong or how we're crazy for doing this. I'd believe you.

It's been a bit busy out lately

2008-06-10T09:58:00.009-04:00

Let me tell you, this has been one crazy period of my life. This has kept me from doing anything that isn't absolutely necessary. And thus the long delay in posting, which everyone is used to by now.

As you know, the husbeast is working in Charleston, SC. We have been looking for a house. Well, after a long and frustrating string of addendums, firefights and rude gestures, we finally bought one. The whole deal would have gone very smoothly but for seller's agent. Never in my life have I dealt with such a petty, unprofessional and blatantly rude person as this. If you live in the area, avoid this twit like the plague. I suspect that he knew he was going to get told off at closing because he brought one of his children with him as protection. Cowardly little man.

End rant. We bought a 1935 Craftsman-style house which, except for the windows and vinyl siding, is pretty much in it's original condition. It needs HVAC, a complete electrical rewire, termite damage repair, and updating in the kitchen and bath. Why didn't I take a picture of the front? IDK, but here's a few pics of the interior:

Last Saturday, we spent the entire day pulling up old carpet and exposing the wood floors underneath. That was so much fun, I wish I could do it every day. Especially in 98-degree weather with 80%+ humidity. This week the contractor guys are looking at the areas where termites feasted on said wood floors. Thankfully, the damage isn't as bad as we originally thought.

Here's some after shots:

See the little heater in front of the fireplace? That's an unvented gas heater. Carbon Monoxide poisoning, anyone? Me first!
I like the haint blue on the stair risers. Perhaps I'll keep it. At least then the boogeymen won't be going upstairs. I'm sure it won't do a thing to keep the cats downstairs, though.

And I've been refinishing my master bath, but that's another post altogether.

Good things about being sick

2008-03-20T10:59:00.003-04:00

My darling husband was gracious and kind to share his funk with me the last time he was home. I appreciate it, truly. While it is no fun to be spewing contagion and speaking in squeaks and whispers, there are some good things about being sick.

1. Codeine. Codeine makes the world go round. One good dose of this stuff and I'm in happy land, only waking occasionally to cough as opposed to checking the clock every hour. It also makes you very mellow. So when the cat throws up on the bathroom floor in the middle of the night, you don't have that urge to kill like usual.

2. Steroids. 'Roids are wonderful. Not only do they restore one's ability to talk normally, they also enable you to clean your entire house, wash your car, rearrange your sock drawer, and organize your pantry-all in 1 hour. You can also eat an amazing amount of food while taking them without getting full. It's like paradise. That is, until you realize your pants don't fit. But at least the house is clean.

3. Work. Being really sick means you get to be out of work and sit around on your keister doing nothing all day. There's a lot to be said for this, considering how much I zoom around on an average day. Of course, I'm blogging, so it's not like I did nothing today.

4. Sleep. You should get lots of this when you're sick. Of course, in my house, that means that Daphne wants to sleep on your head. Theres nothing like a nice, warm, purring cat on your head. All is well until she unleashes a few SBDs and wakes you up to cough and try to clear the air. At least when the dogs fart it's under the covers. They have to sleep in their own green gas bubble.

I'd also like to take a moment to sing the praises of something called a Neti Pot. This humble device has made it possible for me to breathe again. It's pretty crazy. You fill the pot with a mild, warm saline solution, stick it in one nostril, turn your head over the sink, and it flows out of your other nostril. Whoa. Trust me, the first time you use it, it is most unpleasant. The sensation is reminiscent of diving into the pool and getting water up your nose. It's amazing what strange things you can blow out of your nose after using this thing. Shades of green which are really quite fashionable right now. I even saw one shade I might want to paint my bathroom. Don't care for the texture, tho.

The bad part about being sick is that it when it occurs on knit night, you can't go for fear of infecting your friends. But hey, at least I got to watch Mythbusters last night.

That's it! I'm now going back to bed. Goodnight!

Strange things indeed

2008-01-26T13:45:00.001-05:00

I have a new camera. It is very wee. It fits in my purse, goes to Charleston, and creates all sorts of opportunities for mischief. Take for instance when I'm farting around in, say, Tuesday Morning with a few Snarkys. I can take pictures of the very odd things that they sell there. Wanna see what I found? Okeydokey!

This is fire-hydrant jelly jar. Simply fabulous! Everyone needs one, don't be shy. Go on and buy it. Only $5.99, what a bargain for me! Think of the possibilities. You could design your entire kitchen around this thing. See, I've solved all of your design dilemmas in one blog post! Genius!

Or this fabulous ear thermometer.
"Is it an Ear Infection?" I dunno. Is the fact that your baby is a screaming hot mess pulling at his ear clue enough? If not, then you really are a bad mother. No one wanted to tell you, but I will.

And if you're feeling not so fresh,this is offered for your bathing pleasure:
Or not. (Sorry about the picture quality. You can imagine the looks I was getting taking pictures. Polite interest does not begin to describe them. It was more like WTF??? Weirdo.)

Then there are the things which defy description. This masterpiece of ceramics is a cow-themed multiple-sauce-sampler-doohickey. With coordinating pink wire holder. Actually, none of us had any idea what the real purpose of this lovely kitchen(?) item might be.
There was no tag. Maybe it's a religious item used in a Chick-fil-a worshiping cult. It could also be something smuggled in from someone's dirty santa party because they were too embarrassed to keep it in their house (I mean, what if you dropped dead and strangers had to come clean out your house? What would they find? Think about it.)

You know, come to think of it, this would make a great dirty santa gift for next year. I'm gonna have to go back. Anyone want me to pick one up for them? Shoot me an email. Only $50! Such a deal!

Ok, on to the real news. Amy and I hooked up with Heather in Charleston last weekend. Heather is seen here in need of a cupcake. It was cold. That is an understatement.
We went to Victoria's Secret. They were having a sale. Yay! Lacy underthings for almost everyone! The husband was relegated to the boy's section:
All these men trying to look like they are not interested (no sir, not me) in all the estrogen around them. All the while, you know they're like "oh please, please, please buy the hot pink one! Awww man!"

And what trip would be complete without knitting? Heather is making great strides on her sock! She is a really smart cookie who really gets it! Go Heather!
And Amy made a wonderful chocolate cake with peanut-butter frosting, but there was nothing left to take a picture of. And a good time was had by all. That is all.

Thank heaven for little dogs...or not.

2008-01-07T16:50:00.000-05:00

I know, two posts in as many days. Don't get excited, I promise I won't make a habit of it.

And in case any of you were waiting breathlessly about the yard fungus, well, let's just say that wild mushrooms don't freeze well. Alien invasion averted by a characteristic January cold snap. For now.

Most of you know my little dog Flip. He's so old he creaks when he walks. He has 4 teeth left in his head which causes his tongue to dangle out one side of his mouth. He has cataracts in both eyes. He is going deaf. He sleeps all the time, especially when I'm not around. When I'm around, he licks the couch or wanders around asking when the next ship to Tokyo leaves. He's never even been there.

That being said, feeding time is a literal mess. It looks something like this:
Flip eats so slowly that there's time to drive downtown, get a high colonic, and drive back all light and airy while he finishes. While he's smearing food all over the floor and getting at least some of it in his mouth, Zoe is rigid with excitement waiting for him to finish. In about 30 seconds flat, she swoops in
and cleans the entire floor. She's better than a Scooba.

I've always wanted a real dog. Like a greyhound or mastiff or something. But having spent a little time with 3 very loving dobermans, I've decided it's better to have little dogs. The dobies were sweet and wonderful, but they smoosh you when you try to sit on the couch. Literally.

Consider the way little dogs snuggle with you at night. Zoe is the best little hot water bottle around. Or consider the way she barks her fool head off at any perceived intrusion. Better than a burglar alarm. She also travels well and fits in a medium-sized handbag. And her tiny little poos. You won't get that from a big dog. That's why it's better to have little dogs. So says me.

Bye-bye, baby, baby bye-bye...

2008-01-06T17:13:00.000-05:00

I sold my beloved first Miata today. She was so pretty driving off down the street. I hope the lady who has her now will love her as much as I did.

However, I have a new (well, kinda) Miata to make trouble in.
This is a '91 British racing green special edition. It's just out of the shop and is all shiny and pretty. On my next day off, I think I shall wash and wax it just for fun. It has a hard top and I just put in a new stereo and speakers. This should keep me from buying a Mini for a bit, don't you think?

Invasion of the alien life forms

2007-12-29T11:17:00.000-05:00

Please do not pass out; I am indeed blogging.

We had rain over the past 2 days. No one knew how to act. People were absolutely giddy about having wet shoes and bad hair. Nobody remembered how to drive and accidents were abundant. People went to the store and bought bread, eggs, and milk. Total chaos.

That's all fine and good, but then the aliens landed in my front yard. In addition to the normal mushrooms that we all know and love:

This thing started growing. I call it the orange octopus.
The picture really doesn't do it justice. It's got this green, slimy goo on the inside and it seems to pulsate and shimmer. I've never seen anything like it. I'm hoping it doesn't come loose and crawl into the house. On the bright side, maybe it will cut loose and eat all the dog poo in the front yard. That would be handy. Scott says that if an eyeball opens up in the middle of this thing he's going to set it on fire. But I think he might just make it angry.

And the orange octopus brought buddies.

I am informed by my friend Katey that this is a tree brain fungus. I think it looks like radioactive mutant marshmallow. It too seems to pulsate and glow, but with an ominous hum. I'm told it changes and grows into crazy shapes. Can you say blog fodder? Stay tuned. If it gets interesting, you'll be the first to know.

There have been other strange happenings of the mammalian/avian kind as well. In the past 2 months and on different occasions, I have opened my front door to find 3 deer, an eight-point buck, and a gaggle of no fewer than 20 turkeys. I forgot those things can fly. They all looked at me, like, WTF? and took off over the fence across the street. And no, I didn't get a picture of the deer and buck. It was dark and those things move much faster than turkeys. And to top it all off, the frog is back on my back porch.

Sign of the coming apocalypse? You be the judge. "And the seventh angel spilled forth his bowl, and lo, it was full of turkeys."

Flying by the seat of my pants.

2007-11-11T16:42:00.000-05:00

Whew. This week has flown by. My Dad and uncle went to Scotland for a visit with their oldest brother who lives over there. He said he had a smashing time and is very tired and so has gone home to go to the grocery store and get some sleep. He's been on a plane all day long, as one would expect when flying across the pond, no?

When he went over there, I asked him to please look around and see if he could find a small shawl pin for me. I was expecting something much less fabulous than what I got. I was floored. Can you see why?Holy sweaty Scotsman, batman. The picture isn't so good, but it's a solid silver antique plaid broach with Celtic knots, a dog, and a ship. It's resting on a scarf(for my mom) made of the Russell family plaid. Of course I'll bring it to knit night, did you think you'd have to ask? He also brought some fat pills in the form of Scottish Tablets. Sounds innocent enough, except that they are almost pure sugar with a little butter and evaporated milk mixed in. I'm gonna have to find a recipe 'cause these things are not lasting so long around here.

I've been off all week to take care of mom and my darling little brother came in from Arizona to help out. Here he is displaying his usual sunny disposition:Isn't he cute? He's always waving that finger about. What a little ambassador for the family. He hates having his picture taken, poor dear.

Anyhoo, some projects finished this week. Pictures? My pleasure.

To start, my double treadle kit came for my Ashford Traditional wheel. Ed and I stained it and installed it in no time flat. And there is a trick about taking the wheel off, it's so simple, you won't believe it. All you need is a nail and a hammer and ping, it's off. It's more of a visual aid thing, best shown in person. Will do on request.

Here's my "new" wheel. Ain't she pretty? We chose a cherry stain, and I have to say it's hardly distinguishable from the original finish.
Tah-dah!

In other news, I took a crappy, old cabinet that had been Scott's grandmothers and refurbished it. It was originally red, then painted white. I took the (installed backwards) hinges off and painted the whole thing. It's beautiful now. I am so happy with the way it turned out. Here's the outside:
And I painted the inside something the paint chip said was Japanese Fern. It's really more like screaming parakeet green, don't you think? And yes, it's brighter in person. I love it. Seeing it finished makes me want to hop up and down.
And of course it is being used for what? Say it with me, folks. Yarn/fiber storage. Yeah, baby, life is good. I now have a place to keep my fiber from getting, shall we say, other additives. Namely cat hair. I think I'm going to devise some kind of system on the inside of the door to put my straight and circular needles so I won't constantly have to look in three different places for them. That should save me a lot of hassle. Nothing like getting organized is there?

Speaking of organization, I also went through the clothes and got rid of 7-8 bags of stuff. It's good to get rid of crap once in a while. Who needs stuff that doesn't fit anyway?

Lost in Fiber Space

2007-10-29T11:36:00.001-04:00

We went to SAFF this weekend. I'm still having trouble remembering what happened. The yarn fumes overwhelmed the four of us as soon as we walked in the door. The first thing we saw when we walked in Friday morning was this:And this:

That, my friends, is an entire rodeo arena full of fiber-related wonderment. There was all manner of fiber porn everywhere you looked. It became impossible to avert your eyes. The four of us were in shock for the first 4 hours. And to top it all off, there was more outside. Can you believe it? It was like Christmas, but better.

Then we gathered our wits about us and the buying commenced.

Among other things too wonderful to contemplate, Amy and I bought 5 pounds(that's not a typo) of yarn. We plan to dye it and make something magical out of it, but that has yet to be determined. It will need a bit of work though.
I also bought cashmere from Miss Babs, alpaca yarn to make a sweater, fiber to spin and of course, sock yarn. Because there isn't enough in the stash already and what would happen if they just stopped manufacturing the stuff?

We also saw disapproving Llamas
And curious Alpacas:
And we spun , and Bob came to the party!
And we bought
And Katey inspired us all to bigger things by winning first place, second place, and Best in Show for her handspun fiber.In general, a good time and many things were learned by all. The most important thing I learned is not to let a stupid piece of wood get the best of you. And that it's important to have really good friends without which I would laugh a lot less and take myself way too seriously.

Got Fish?

2007-10-13T19:20:00.001-04:00

For many years (yes, years, something like maybe 3ish) my fishtank sat neglected. It was the source of much ridicule for me. My poor husband tried when he was home, but finally gave up. And as the years went by, it kinda became something of a science experiment. It didn't stink, it was all natural, and it was obviously low maintenance. What's not to like? See for yourself:
Ok, so it's kindof an eyesore. Well, I finally thought so too. And so came the day that I got a wild hair and decided to clean it up a bit. I took the filter apart (which was surprisingly unclogged), changed the water and scrubbed the sides. Lo! There were 2 fish living. They looked lonely, so I added friends today. See how pretty?

Holy crapmuffins, Batman! If I do say so myself, it looks right pretty. There are now 7 fishies in there, and they seem to be happy and content. We'll see if I can keep this up. But it sure looks better, don't you agree? And I have an angelfish. I love those.

In other news, Zoe wants to say thank you to mommiesfriendamy who made her this sweater. She said to tell mommiesfriendamy that she feels like a pretty, pretty princess and that she likes it especially since it keeps her tummy warm now that it's cold out, yes she does.

'Cause it's important to be warm when you are such a small dog with no hair whatsoever on her tummy. True that.

Today's post: Car Stereo Repair

2007-10-02T15:52:00.000-04:00

This morning on the way home, I noticed that my subwoofer in the back of the Exploder was buzzing like someone had stuffed it full of marshmallows or maybe violently ill pixies (I checked. Sadly there were no marshmallows. Or pixies.). The thing sounded terrible. It had to die.

A little online research convinced me that this could cost a little or a lot. So instead of going somewhere and paying out my dupa(Polish for "bottom." Stop looking at me that way) with money I don't have(because SAFF is coming up and there must be money for fiber), I decided that I can work a screwdriver(as well as read a knitting pattern, and make a mean beef stroganoff) and that it would be an adventure to fix it myself.

Off I went to my local stereo store where there were a bunch of tattooed guys discussing speakers and sound quality and whatnot with each other. One of the tattooed guys was very nice and gave me just the right speaker for the car. He very nicely explained that since my old subwoofer had two male (use your imagination) connectors and that the new one has 4 male connectors, I would have to wire it up differently to install it. I needed to go to Radio Shack to get my female (you can do it) connectors. No problem, right?

Well. I walked in and the guy at radio shack took one look at the old and new speakers in my hand and said "No". "No what?" I asked. "We don't do car stereo here" he said. Wow. Like it hadn't occurred to me that Radio Shack WASN'T a car stereo place. How stupid of me. I politely explained that I needed female connectors to connect the wires. He proceeded to tell me that he does a LOT of car stereo and what I wanted to do wasn't possible because he'd never seen a subwoofer with 4 male connectors before. It took a lot of explaining and visual aids before he was on board with the project. I bought a soldering iron instead of female connectors (his one good suggestion) and left. He told me to have fun on my way out. Thanks dude, rock on.

Anyhoo, here's what my old subwoofer looked like once I ripped it's guts out:

And the new subwoofer all soldered up and ready to install:
And the finished product:

Ok, so it's not perfect. In taking out the panel, I broke it a little bit, but hey, it's an 11-year-old car. It has a few dings. Given how most of my cracked-up, post-call plans I usually hatch explode in my face, this one went surprisingly well. And it sounds pretty good too.

I'm gonna go celebrate and eat some marshmallows. And if I find any pixies, I'll let you know.

Frog Thursday!

2007-09-27T10:49:00.001-04:00

I woke up this morning and what to my wondering eyes did I see?

A frog! I guess he took his sticky little feet and climbed up until he found a safe place. He did make the tiniest of beeps when I took his picture, tho.

Just so you know!

We interrupt this Ravelry session to bring you an actual blog post...

2007-09-26T11:45:00.000-04:00

I have been on ravelry just a bit lately and neglected all other activities including, but not limited to, blog posting, house cleaning, eating, and actual work. What can I say? It's such a cool site and so attractive to someone like me who likes to see things all in one place and neatly organized. It just makes my inner organizers heart go flippity-flop. For those of you who have seen my house, keep your mouth shut. I know what's in all the paper piles, so there. Not surprisingly, Ravelry's invasion of my world has resulted in my back porch looking like a yarn store barfed on it.

Maybe that will change this weekend, when I figure out where I'll put it all back. Don't hold your breath.

I would love to bring you pictures of our Yarn Harlot outing, but I forgot my camera. Also would like to tell you about the Snarky's big night out at an actual restaurant that serves dinner on real plates, but I also forgot my camera. Seems I'm always showing up to something half-dressed, figuratively speaking.

So, I give to you a random bunneh picture. Here's Oliver! He was too tired to disapprove.

I am Superchicken-hear me roar!

2007-09-20T14:09:00.000-04:00

I got my Ravelry invite!!!!!

I am beside myself. I've only been on a few minutes and already see what an enormous time suck this is going to be. There is so much to do and see and smell and and and...

I don't know how I'm going to get any sleep tonight!

Wait! I can do this from work! Except that my nurse just put someone in a room! NOOOO!!!

Hop! Hop! Hop!

2007-09-17T21:11:00.001-04:00

I am hopping up and down with anticipation!

From Ravelry:
You signed up on July 5, 2007
You are #14077 on the list.
510 people are ahead of you in line.
19172 people are behind you in line.
40% of the list has been invited so far

That's, like, only a few days, right?!?

And Yarn Harlot this week! Wheee!

Turds are Trash, not Toys

2007-09-14T17:56:00.000-04:00

That's right, everyone. I'm babysitting AmyDe's babycats and they sure are being kittens. Sneaking up on old dogs, antagonizing young dogs:Tangling the blind cords. Again.
And getting in to places we shouldn't. I knew it was too quiet while I was on the computer...

Too bad kittens move too fast to photograph well. I've worn myself out tonight chasing them around to get just the right shot. We even got older, fatter Peeves to play!
And don't forget-the mostest, favoritest game of all-TURD HOCKEY! Bunny turds seem to be the scat of choice. They are small, round and hard. They whizz around at alarming speeds when smacked. They are little enough to be picked up and stuffed in your brother's ears when you have him in a headlock (don't worry Amy, I made them pick them out). In addition, they can't be that gross because bunnies are vegetarian, right?

I know what you guys are all thinking. Holy Toledo-she actually put pictures up here! Well, I did, didn't I? That's because I finally found the software to sync my camera. And here's one more, from my trip to SF last fall. Just because, that's why. Isn't SF pretty? This was taken the evening before we were rudely whisked back home by a very demanding thing called work. Too bad, that. We were just getting started.

Anyhoo, my husband is on his way from work, should take a few hours to get home. And it's getting hungarian out there. Time to scrounge in the fridge for something to eat. But before I go Heather, this one's for you:

Flippity!

Won't be long now...

2007-09-07T22:42:00.000-04:00

I'll NEVER get on Ravelry at this rate:
You signed up on July 5, 2007
You are #14077 on the list.
2695 people are ahead of you in line.
17266 people are behind you in line.
36% of the list has been invited so far

*sigh*

Well it's been a really trying week, but at least I have really, really clean sheets.

Allow me to explain. I have an old dog, Flip, who creeps out all my friends with his wierd tongue. As I said, he's old. As in-the vet won't even guess how old. He's also getting a bit demented, so I shouldn't be surprised when he peed on the bed just after going out last week. This was washing number 1.

This week, Flip woke me up at 6 am to go out. As I snuggled back in to bed with everybody for 30 more minutes of sleep, Pooh, my 16-year-old cat crawled under the covers to cuddle. This is his usual custom and fine with me except that he PEED ON ME! Not cool. Wash Number 2.

That night, Pooh, as is his usual custom, hopped up on the bed to sleep on my pillow and cut loose again. On the pillow. Which of course sprinkled down to the newly washed and just made bed. Wash number 3.

Well, at least if things come in threes then it's all over, right? Good. Because my bed is now, as I said before, really, really clean. Thanks. No more peeing in the bed-for anybody. Not like it's been allowed there in the past.

I'm just sayin'.

Be warned

2007-08-26T12:28:00.000-04:00

It's been that kind of weekend. You know the one, as soon as you are by yourself, loads of things happen that you could really use help with. Good times.

For instance, Friday night a favorite tree came down in my front yard, conveniently landing such that it blocks the neighbors driveway. Apparently, it had rotted inside and looked perfectly healthy outside. Now, birds employ a survival method where when one of them is sick they act normal until they drop dead. This is a survival method which insures the flock won't desert it, thus offering it the protection and comfort of numbers. Does this happen in trees? Was my this tree afraid all the others were going to come lumbering across the yard, Ent-like, and murder it in it's sleep? Who can say?

Now for the fun part. And this one's a little scary, folks. Last night I was sitting at my computer, minding my own business when my faithful dog (well, not really a dog-she's a 6 pound chihuahua) started growling at the door. Moments later, I thought I heard someone try the door and she went crazy barking her head off. I guess they took off when they heard her ferocious bark. Good dog, that bug.

Naturally, I grabbed the phone and quietly retreated to the other room, calling the cops as I went. The po-po came, had a look around around and seemed to think I was some kind of alarmist. Whatever. All good, right?

Well no. I am pissed. How dare some jackass come on to my property and freak me out like that? I live in a subdivision in a very low-crime area. I will not live my life in fear and trepidation. And trust me, if someone does get in here, I'm not going down without a fight.

Oh screw. I'm tired of waiting for the tree guy. I'm going to go get a pedicure and buy a shotgun.

Hey look, I'm a real blogger!

2007-08-20T09:58:00.000-04:00

I haven't posted in over a week! I'm just like the rest of you!

Well, we're back. For those who don't know, my husband started his new job today. In Charleston. Yep, for the forseeable future, he's down there and I'm stuck up here. Send good thoughts his way, he's pretty anxious to do well at this new place. Go Bean!

Charleston is beautiful, however, and not such a bad place. Being near the ocean, they actually get rain almost daily. Not so much here.

We looked at a few places to live, and ate lots of http://www.freshcupcakes.com/. Yes'm, there's a store that only makes cupcakes. And they're good ones too. I got a recipe card and will try my hand at making a few in my spare time. Yeah.

Of course, I flew back last night and I noticed a few differences between the ATL and CHS airports. For one, the people are nicer in Charleston. It took me all of 2 minutes to get through security, and that's with scanning my bag twice for dangerous knitting implements like stitch markers. Long story short, I got to sit for about 1.5 hours and discovered I had brought the WRONG yarn with which to start BFF Jill's present. Crumbs.

So I read Harry Potter #4 instead. I'm catching up people, soon you'll be able to discuss the end with me, I promise.

The puppies were thrilled to see me back at least. Zoe recognized me immediately and poor old Flip just kinda stood there until I petted him, then he went into paroxisms of joy. Poor dude, he's just old. Like, Noah old. I bet he dosen't move from the bed where I left him until I get home this evening.

Anyone wanna trade?

2007-08-07T10:13:00.000-04:00

I check on the Seattle Space Needle site fairly frequently. Today it's rainy and 59 degrees. Let's compare that with Atlanta which has a code red air quality alert and a projected high of 99. Very nice. If you happen to like living in the devil's armpit.

I think I'd like to trade.

In other news, I took advantage of the tax free weekend to purchase a new computer. Once I get it (today?!?), I'll be able to post pictures and such. Am hopping up and down in anticipation, must stop. It gets the dogs wound up and the last thing I need is Zoe peeing on the floor from overexcitation.

Pictures soon, I promise.

The joys of homeownership are legion

2007-08-04T16:05:00.000-04:00

We've just spent the morning putting in new windows upstairs. Let me assure you that it is plenty tired out there right now. Also hot.

The fun had to stop when we ran out of caulk. Bummer. Now we're off to take advantage of the tax-free weekend which is what I really wanted to do in the first place.

Why now? Why not?

2007-08-02T15:18:00.001-04:00

Reasons I've had not to blog until now:

It's time-consuming and I'm busy.
I don't need another hobby.
I have nothing positive to put out there.
I'm not a techie. (I am, however, a geek.)

Enough of that. I'll give it a stab. Especially since my snarky friends came up with a name I like. Name sound familiar? http://youtube.com/watch?v=7wMHcpMmV9g.

Manah manah to you too.