Tuesday, April 05, 2005

Interviewees beware!

I had two responses from people willing to get interrogated. I mean interviewed. Since I am a therapist and am very skilled at asking h-a-r-d questions I have purposely tried to be nice and simple here. Though if you are really daring I could ask you things for which you may never have an answer!

Amy the movie buff. You are the first winner!

1. You can play any character in the movie "Sideways". Regardless of their gender, etc. which character would you play- and why?

2. If you were a type of cheese which cheese would you be and why?

3. If you could knit any kind of sculpture what would the sculpture be?

4. What is one thing that you hope your children learn from you that you do, and what is one thing that you do that you don't want them to do?

5. Your dogs haven't scored a place on your blog yet, but I know they are cool. What is the funniest dog story that you have about them?



Kelle- the all-knowing knitter
1. If you were a type of cheese which cheese would you be and why?

2. Are there any knitting techniques that you haven't tried? Are there any knitting projects that you started and gave up since they were too hard for you?

3. Have you ever been hesitant about knitting in public or hae you ever been reprimanded by strangers for your behavior?

4. Double dare. Are you willing to post a picture of your stash online?

5. What is one thing that you hope your children learn from you that you do, and what is one thing that you do that you don't want them to do?

If either of you want to answer the other's questions in addition to yours go ahead.

A weird situation

Awhile back I was in this weird situation in which nearly everyone, myself included got unfavorable grades on our papers. Yuck! It was an unprecedented situation and we were given a few options like re-taking the class for free, fixing our papers, or taking another class for half the cost. I figured that I'd already spent enough time working on this particular project that I may as well fix my work and re-submit it. I went to a help session with the prof that felt more like a nightmarish piano lesson in which nothing makes sense and nothing goes right. (I've been there. I had a traumatizing piano teacher for too many years of my childhood).

Then I thought, another paper. Are you serious? I don't want to do it all again! So, rather than fix my paper I decided to take a different class. I figured, I can learn some other stuff, and even though I will be giving up another weekend and will just have had class the Saturday prior this seems like the best decision. Plus, my class will be with my favorite instructor of all time, Wes Wingett. He lives in NE and comes and teaches periodically throughout the year, so it's kind of a special treat to be in his classes. He has this uncanny ability to get to the deepest part of a person's soul within a matter of seconds. Wow. He is so wise that when I first met him I asked if I could follow him around like a puppydog and watch everything he does and do everything that he does. He said no to that, but said I could take whichever classes he teaches and learn that way.

So now I have turned an unfortunate event into a positive learning time. And I will be learning about the psychology of addiction. I just hope he doesn't make me give up sugar for a month and journal about it like my undergrad addictions class prof required! That was rough. I found myself rationalizing eating things with sugar whenever I heard about the relapses of fellow students. I dreamed and fantasized about indulging in high quality treats. My friend Elzbieta and I drove across the city to Cossetta to indulge in the most fabulous amaretto gelato. If I was going to have sugar it was going to be the best treat I could imagine. None of that tootsie roll pseudo-chocolate stuff for me!

Yes- I did get my two papers done and in the mail yesterday. Yes, I did write another paper this morning. If my counting is right, I am estimating that I will write a paper for my current class, a paper for my next class, then 2 short papers, and my big thesis paper a total of five papers remaining to be written in my grad school career. I think I can handle that...

Look what I get!

Look what I get!

I love koalas

Does this scare you or inspire you?!

Does this scare you or inspire you?!

Look at those eyes on that doll!

So cute, so naive, tomorrow his world will be turned upside down!

So cute, so naive, tomorrow his world will be turned upside down!

He doesn't really know that his little sister is coming home tomorrow!
Prepare to be
de-throned only child!

A good as this was, it didn't inspire me to write a paper!

A good as this was, it didn't inspire me to write a paper!

it did induce some serious knitting, though! Mmm. Caffe Breve with
caramel, white chocolate, and coffee-flavored whip cream. Indulgence at
it's finest!

In such a beautiful place there must be knitting!

In such a beautiful place there must be knitting!

Potter's Shed, Shell Lake, WI

My husband's grandma made this quilt! What talent!

My husband's grandma made this quilt! What talent!

I bet you want one too!

Microwave, by special request

Microwave, by special request

Voila!

Friday, April 01, 2005

Purple sweater in bedroom

Purple sweater in bedroom

Help! My world has been turned upside down by the Mac Mini

I no longer have my lovely Picasa 2 to work with, and seem to not get the option from the Mac to add links to my blog, and now, I don't know how to control the size or titles of my images! All this and more!

If you are in grad school and you are almost done I recommend that you NOT switch from a Mac to a PC or a PC to a Mac. Stay with what you are comfortable with! I will try nearly any new food, drink, visit any new place, etc. but when it comes to me learning a new computer program I have a hard time. I just want to stick with what I know.

So, apologies for the Clifford-the dog sized images here. Yikes! Well, maybe if you have a really huge monitor and fast internet you'll be fine, but I do not find my blog aestheticaly appealing now.

I do however find my purple sweater fantastic, though. I knit with a friend at Betsy's Back Porch Coffee in Mpls while drinking a mayan mocha, and finished up the collar and part of the long sleeve to waist seam. I really didn't want to leave for class, but I was a good girl and went. We got out early- and I excitedly went home and finished my purple sweater at 1:43 am. I think it was actually closer to 1:30 but I was ecstatic that I did it, exceedingly happy with it, and it was oh so cozy. It felt like a big toasty sweatshirt- but looks much classier than that. Needless to say, I didn't want to take it off. Whatever am I going to do sitting around in a sweater on a caffeine and adrenaline high when the rest of our neighborhood sleeps?! I reluctantly took it off and went to bed- but it's back on right now as I type. I think it is helping keep me calm despite all this computer craziness due to its comfort, calming deep colors, and the warmth that I love.

If you know me, you know that I love to be warm. In college I would go to class in a sweatshirt and realize in the evening that I wasn't even cold, in fact I was hot and was making my body dehydrated while it tried to keep me cool. All that for cozy comfort. The flip side is that if I lived in a really hot place I would bask in the sun like a lizard while lounging around in tank tops. I love wearing tank tops, too.

Noro Gloria

DSCF0008.JPG

DSCF0008.JPG

DSCF0010.JPG

DSCF0010.JPG

DSCF0010.JPG

DSCF0016.JPG

DSCF0016.JPG

DSCF0016.JPG

Thursday, March 31, 2005

Interview me!!!!

I have been hooked on Dogs Steal Yarn for a long time, see sidebar to visit this rockin' blog. So when its creator invited brave bloggers to be interviewed I thought...hmmm...dare I? Well, I dared. I figured it would be a fun, mind boggling experience, and indeed, it did not dissapoint:)

Here ya go...all you blog readers dangling in the suspense of the moment. And might I add this is a welcome respite from the "regurgitate your learning sessions" aka writing papers for class to get a degree that will be ALL MINE soon!

So here are my five questions... with answers

1. Congratulations! You’ve won that $100 drawing on KnitPicks. What do you buy with it?

Wow. I've won a scrapbooking 30 second shopping spree, but I've never visited KnitPicks. I just visited KnitPicks. Where is the Colinette yarn? Hmm. Can I get the cute and saucy llamas from the front page? I would select Merino Style in asparagus, cornflower and harvest, get the book that tells me how to make gloves with sock yarn, Elegance in wild rose, Knitter's Little Helper Hand Cream- I've tried it, it's cool and it works, Interweave's and Wiseman's two books on finishing techniques, circular needles, and more dpn's. Hmm. I think I went over budget!


2. Can you think of anything funnier than a herd of corgis running? (I can’t...okay...so maybe a herd of dachshunds...) What’s the funniest dog story you’ve got?

I was in bed "sleeping", and my husband had left for work. I heard the front door open and someone barrel up the stairs towards the bed room. I got out of bed to see what was up, and I noticed that the front door was just about to close. My husband had came back for his cell phone. I asked him where Buster went. He didn't know. We both searched all over the house for him, under the bed, in each room, and called his name. I stood on our front steps in a Victoria Secret tank top and capri pants while calling his name. I looked around and was convinced that he had run outside while the door was still open. We couldn't find him anywhere and he wasn't responded to his name being called. Then I went to my walk-in closet and opened the door, and out burst Buster with his ears back, his eyes wide as saucers, and his delirious I'm so happy to see you! face on. He ran at us, and I could not stop laughing with joy and at his crazy antics. You'd think he would have been narking or scratching at the door, but I must have had a nice comfy pile of clothes on the floor for him to enjoy (Mom- don't read that part. Really my closet is always organized!).

It's also cute when he howls, and when he is po-go dog when his little head pops up above the windowsill as I leave our house.

3. Fill in the blank. “If someone told me ten years ago that I’d be doing ...... today, I would have laughed my ass off.”
Well, 10 years ago I would have been 15. I never in my wildest dreams thought I could belong to a two dog household. Genevieve is coming in a week! I didn't think I'd cook gourmet meals or have a zester, either. I especially didn't think I'd almost have a Master's degree! Oh, wait. I didn't expect to have my own blog or to have knit nearly 2 sweaters. That last one is probably the craziest to me.

4. You can have one room of a house entirely for yourself. It doesn’t have to be your house, or a house that actually exists. What does the room look like, what do you put in it, and what will you do there?

It'd be a spacious sun room in a sunny place (not MN!) . It would be filled with flowering ginger, hibiscus, frangipani, orchids, everything luscious. It would be my own arboretum and I'd have a big koi pond, a japanese garden, and original sculptures by Loet VanderVeen. It would have comfy seating and I would knit, have parties, and do whatever I wanted there!


5. What does the smell of fresh-cut grass remind you of? How about the smell of frying eggs?
Fresh cut grass reminds me of the days that I wore grass perfume purchased at Nordstrom by Smell This! and when I used to take English riding lessons. Ohh, to ride a horse again. When I smell frying eggs I think of Rachel Ray and her Green Ranch Hand Eggs, and how my husband and I cook together and for each other.

Now that you see how fun this is it's your turn!

Here are the rules:

1. Leave me a comment saying “interview me.”
2. I will respond by asking you five questions here. They will be different questions than the ones below.
3. You will update YOUR blog with the answers to the questions.
4. You will include this explanation and an offer to interview someone else in the same post.
5. When others comment asking to be interviewed, you will ask them five questions

Wednesday, March 30, 2005

In the interest of school work

I am blogging now to get all the brainiac juices flowing so I can continue writing my papers that are due Monday. I cannot comprehend what it will feel like to not write papers...like once I graduate from Grad school. If anyone told me I'd have to write this many papers albeit papers of varying lengths I would say no way! But here I am knitting through more schooling. The thing that inspires me or actually motivates me to keep writing is knowing that I can earn knitting time- from myself. I can be pretty rigid with my school work schedule- work for 45min to 1 hour, then knit 2 rows, or however many I can get done in an episode of Rebecca's Garden. Wait! What's up- I can't link to her site now? There are two icons present on my blog bar instead of the usual many. I can upload files, or do the fradulent spell check. I call it fradulent since the one time I tried it my posting dissappeared completely. When the post goes away like that, just where does it go? Hmm...I think I'd better go write my paper now...

OH- I had a great time as always with the EP Dunn Bros SnBers. Plus the cold rain was enough to inspire me to work on the re-knitting of my purple wool sweater collar. I think it will be more turtley this time, instead of like the wide giant collar that is was. Plus, I am so distracted by my Noro/Cascade 220 Gloria sweater. The striping action or switching colors every two rows is so addictive! Especially since the Noro changes colors quite dramatically. Pics on that later- like on my next study break!

Tuesday, March 29, 2005


Genevieve is growing up. Posted by Hello

Soon we will have our new puppy! Posted by Hello

Sunday, March 27, 2005

Happy Easter!

I just finished dining with my family for Easter. We had tons of food, and I made chocolate souffle for our dessert. Yum. I hope everyone else has a good Easter and is able to hang out with friends and family today. Our weather is really nice with sunshine and a temperature around 55.

My Noro sweater back piece is slowly progressing. I finally got to a more fun part where I get to switch my yarn every two rows.

These two pics below are Eastery pics I took while in California.

Saturday, March 26, 2005


Bunny topiary Posted by Hello

Easter at Knitting Arts yarn store  Posted by Hello

Thursday, March 24, 2005

Morning wake up call

Our dog is VERY successful at waking me up as my husband is leaving for work. Granted, I don't really need to sleep in that much, but I had been rationalizing a good sleep till about 9-10 as a cure for jet lag. I think I am sufficently un-jet lag-ed now, so I no longer have that excuse. Plus- I may as well get some of my work done before I "play" knit in public today.

Our corgi chases his tail while spinning profusely andbarking maniacally. That is how he expresses himself when someone close to him leaves. He does it for me, DH, Elizabethan, my parents, the works. If he knows them well enough and they start to get ready to leave he will turn into a little tornado (to use my in-laws term of endearment for him).

I have been thinking about it and taking everyone's opinions into consideration with my purple sweater. The consensus is that my purple turtleneck is more of a tortoise-neck, and again I must manipulate the pattern to my ideal. I already re-altered the sleeves a lot, to make them more fitted, so no big (to use Kim Possible's phrase) regarding the need to turtleifye the neck. Well that was what I thought. After an evening of ripping out the seven inches of stitches and a late bedtime when the wool began to enmesh itself I had gotten back to my starting point. I'm thinking if my collar is half as wide, 72/2= 36 it might be a whole lot better. Since my wacky corgi woke me I think it is about time to start the redo.

Wednesday, March 23, 2005


Elephant seal pups Posted by Hello

My first "real" sock Posted by Hello

Cascade 220 and Noro Kujaku sweater Posted by Hello

Collar is done!  Posted by Hello

Last meal in San Francisco- dungeness crab Posted by Hello

Rainy irises Posted by Hello

Pretty kitty in Moroccan store Posted by Hello

Thursday, March 17, 2005


passionfruit milk tea with green apple jelly, and caramel bubble tea (w/o tapioca pearls), Noro kujaku and Cascade 220 Gloria cardigan on the needles Posted by Hello

Arbor Posted by Hello

Hiding duck Posted by Hello

Mercado, Sunnyvale Posted by Hello

Japanese garden Posted by Hello

Hakone Garden, Saratoga, CA Posted by Hello

Alice in Wonderland Posted by Hello

Monday, March 14, 2005

Here in Silicon Valley

I am here, at this moment using the Intel lounge computers with my husband standing next to me. Earlier, I drove a rental car for the first time, a Buick LeSabre, to Saratoga, CA to Knitting Arts to buy needles that were long enough for cardigan knitting and reinforcing sock thread for the heel of my sock in progress.
This morning I had a waffle at the hotel's breakfast place, then sat outside poolside alternating between knitting a swatch of Noro Kujaku and napping. OH, I also located a J Crew outlet store. Sweet Dog!!

And thus I am ecstatic at my trip to Knitting Arts and then to WestGate Mall's Hancock Fabrics for the sock reinforcing stuff that a kind yarn store girl hunted down for me.
CA, well specifically the Silicon Valley is very beautiful now with flowers and trees in bloom. Later I will post some pics of the views so you can enjoy them vicariously.

OH, for lunch we ate at Thai Thai, a place that Troy thought was a hole in the wall from the outside. It was pretty good though and I had green curry with chicken and bamboo shoots.

Now Troy is done for the day, and we can have the whole night together to explore.

My driving experiences here have proved to be kinder than those in MN. It seems like the drivers are better here but the roads are marked oddly.

Thursday, March 10, 2005

A is for...

Apple, aardvark, anteater, abacadabra, excellent, wonderful? Well, I am at my grad school at this very moment, sitting in the office, I just received my research paper. You know the one I was toiling and tormented over, well, yes, that one. The one that about ruined me...well, that same paper is the source of all kinds of goodness today, because...I got an A!!!!!!

I am more in shock than anything. I know that I worked as hard as hard could be, and stressed and sweated, and burned candles, and stayed up till 2 and 2:30am and then 2 again to edit the wretched thing. And now the wretched thing is a twisted element of happiness. As I have survived it and thrived it. YIPPEEE!

Are you all going to celebrate with me now? Have a cocktail, or a coke, or whatever floats your boat! I know that I will indulge in all things indulgent. OH, what a way to preface my California vacation, sweet doggity!

Tuesday, March 08, 2005

The Yarn Cafe Cometh, and is here

I haven't been there yet- I was in class all weekend long in Golden Valley, but there is a new store, "The Yarn Cafe" in Maple Grove. It has created quite a stir in the SnB circle- and I thought I better lay out my comments about it, as it seems that everyone else already has done just that. So I say, "yay! New store!!" The more stores the merrier. Plus, I enjoyed the Yarn Cafe's kiosk at the Mpls Women's Expo- and I have coupons for yarn discounts. I will drive across the world for a discount on yarn! So- yes, I will go there, but I just might check out the other store, Amazing Threads while I'm there. For more thoughts on this visit here and here.

Well I just had to type those links in all the way by hand since my hotkeys on the mac mini + windows system didn't work. Hmm.. more for dh to figure out before my blog returns to normal.

Monday, March 07, 2005

Jerusalem and Pericles

This past Thursday night we seized an opportunity for a date night in the midst of all my busyness and classes. With the research paper turned in I breathed a sigh of relief on Wednesday morning at the EP SnB. Quite a nice time, as usual. Thursday I indulged in KIP (knitting in public) with my friend Leslie at Anodyne. I was very impressed with their hip, modern interior design as well as my fave drink Cafe miel, and some tasty curry soup. Yum. Then it was off to Golden Valley for an appointment, then time to select a random Uptown street on which to leave my car so my husband and I could share one car for our dinner date of Jerusalem Cafe in Mpls, and then to continue our season's ticket-holding status at the Guthrie Lab. The dinner was really good, I'd suggest a trip there for middle eastern food. Pericles at the Lab was great too. We were not familiar with this Shakespeare play so I don't know if it really was intended to have middle eastern influences, but the set and costumes were fabulous. I was impressed that it began as a tragedy but the resolution led to comedy/happy play. I'm not used to Shakespeare plays being uplifting, but this one was. Lastly, we visited Zeno in Uptown to buy a tremendous piece of chocolate cake. We have eaten from it since Thursday, yet there is at least half the piece left!!

Well, I guess I survived my weekend class. It was exhausting yet amazing. I learned so much about myself and others, and the experience was a once in a lifetime thing. The instructor/therapist was phenomenal, encouraging, supportive, extremely well-read, yet he has a gentleness to his approach that led us all to take risks and to push ourselves to do things that we never dreamed possible.

My husband is resting now. It seems like he has a cold. He took very good care of me this weekend and put up with all my exhaustion and exhilaration quite well. He cooked me a fontina, onion, and bell pepper omelette with corn cakes for my Sunday breakfast, and made mexican meatza pizza for dinner (both were Rachel Ray meals).

I am getting curious about our little pup Genevieve. We should be getting her soon, like in a few weeks.

OH- I finished watching the "Wickedly Perfect" finale this afternoon from my parents' TIVO. I was very happy with the choice of the winner. I was going to be mad if the other person won.

I intended to put some links in here, but I'm not familiar with the process with our new Mac Mini. So far I have handled the PC to Mac shift quite well. I like the little icons on the bottom as I am a visual person.

Saturday, February 26, 2005


playtime at Funtime kennels Posted by Hello