Thursday, June 30, 2005
where i have been.
hi. so. long story short, my grandmother had a pretty severe stroke on sunday night. within the space of days she went from fighting to still be independent to now living in the same nursing home that my dementia suffering grandfather has made his home. she's gone from puttering around in her funny way with her walker to writhing in agony in a small hospital bed, unable to use her now paralyzed right side, or chew or swallow properly, with no control of her bodily functions. this week has been unbelievably challenging to my family, and to me. my dad has gone back to new york and grandma is settling into the rehab floor of the home. i'm going to the cottage this weekend, which i think will be VERY good for me. no pictures because i left my charger in canada two weeks ago and my cam battery is dead. when i return i hope i have SOMETHING to show other than a ton of bug bites and a sunburn.
hope everyone in north america has a safe and happy holiday weekend.
xo
11:35 PM /
Wednesday, June 29, 2005
where is rachel m?
hey- fyi, i'm having some family issues. every night i get home thinking, 'i should update jgo, but i'm SO worn out'. so quickly, am close to running out of koigu, started another pair of socks and a top down raglan out of woolease that i'm already bored of. bought six balls of pink cotton ease at tuesday morning. work work work. family family family. and right now i need to scoot my toosh into the shower so i'm not late for work again.
xoxoxo
6:36 AM /
Tuesday, June 21, 2005
raaawr.
on friday afternoon, i made a last-minute trip to the adam's house. he'd had some bad news and needed the company- so. rachel to the rescue! the thing that he wanted to do, strictly for cheering up purposes, was go to the toronto zoo. he'd been talking about taking me there since last summer, when we visited the cleveland zoo. so saturday morning we got up fairly early and headed out. we had a wonderful day- i love seeing the animals even though zoos leave me feeling conflicted. on the one hand- yay animals! on the other-, well. poor animals all caged up. the toronto zoo seemed really really really into conservation and preservation of species and i appreciated that. plus? lions and tigers and elephants and giraffes!!! i took so many photos my battery died halfway through the zoo. this was one of three sumatran tigers, he was having a yawn. after that he got up and started grooming one of his pals. the cute was overwhelming.
the koigu wrap came with me. it was very excited about the car ride to the zoo. sadly, she seems determined to NOT GROW no matter how much i knit. but i won't give up. at some point in my life this wrap will be finished. i think.
AND! look what came in the mail yesterday from my secret 'enabler'! a skein of cherry tree hill supersock in the 'foxy lady' colourway!!!! this stuff is divine and i cannot wait to knit myself some super luxurious socks. thanks so much, secret pal!!! i like your theory that it doesn't count as feeding my addiction if someone else buys the yarn ;) but, i think i must wait to cast on until after i finish the sockapal2za socks and mellie's birthday socks (which are on temporary hold because i can't find my notes. ooops.) i plan on getting my first package out to my pal either this weekend or early next week. i picked up some goodies for her over the weekend.
in other news, on the weekend i purchased THE MOST COMFORTABLE SHOES EVER, a pair of crocs. adam's mum was wearing them and they looked so comfy. she let me try them on and the next day i forced adam to drive out to the store she purchased them at and now i have my own pair (in black of course). i wore them to work yesterday- my feet didn't hurt at ALL. my next pair will be hot pink.
AND- yesterday, after work, i went to the petstore and bought a fishie. i cannot seem to get a photo of him, but i can tell you that he is a red and aqua coloured betta and his name is babel (as in the babel fish). he was nearly named 'darth betta', but i like babel better. right now he is happily swimming away in the expensive bowl i bought him (i didn't like the less expensive ones. i thought my fishie deserved the 15$ bowl). so far, the cats haven't even noticed that they are sharing the house with a fishie (he's living on the top shelf of my bookshelf), and i hope it stays that way!
and now, i must get myself ready for work. oh how i wish i could stay home today. it is only tuesday and i am already having a Very Bad Week. does life ever stop with the constant pain and challenges? because i'm really ready for a break.
talk soon, xoxo.
6:26 AM /
Tuesday, June 14, 2005
the woman with too much sock yarn
first: i FINALLY received my sockapalooza socks!!! my sockpal apparently knit the socks. she even finished them a month early. but i have yet to get them as she, apparently, has yet to send them. alison took care of it and arranged a consolation prize pair. they arrived on saturday and i LOVE THEM, see? already my feet are enjoying these soft and beautiful sockies.
they were knit for me by judy, of theknitter.com, which happens to be my favourite online yarn shop. she says they're made of lorna's laces and knit in one of the sock of the month patterns, butterfly. they fit like a dream and i love love love them. i'm grateful to alison for arranging a make-up pair and i look forward to better luck in sockapaltwoza and the secret pal thingie!
i've also been knitting. no, really! i have! i started mel's birthday socks out of regia jubilee india.
i'm nearly done with the first of the pair (mel likes shortie socks, too) and i really love this colourway. i have a second ball to knit a pair for myself sometime.
i also started, on a total whim, the 'not-so-round scarf' from sally melville's the purl stitch.
i had two skeins of koigu and inspiration from another knitter and off i went. i knit about four inches, realized i needed to move up a needle size. ripped back, started over. i'm nearly done with the first lace pattern- about 9 inches of a ribbed lace. i'm still really worried about having enough yarn, but i have faith and i'm hoping i can block it out to a) a size that fits me and b) doesn't look HORRIBLE on me. worst case scenario, i'll run out of yarn, give up the dream, rip and knit myself some socks.
and let me tell you about knitting myself some socks. i'm on a sock yarn diet. i've gone a bit crazy, thanks to my friendly ebay pusher, shelley of fun knits. these are pictures of my newest sock yarn acquisitions. folks, i have a problem...
that's two balls of opal handpaint (the darker is the ripped fluted banister socks and not so new), and three balls of regia cotton blends, four balls of various opals (including the fun rainbow brasil 5001) and a ball of trekking xxl that judy sent along with my socks. no more ebay for me. no way, no how. i mean, can look, i just can't click the buy now or bid now buttons. no matter how tempted i am. people, i need your support on this.
and outside of ebay addictions and koigu worries, i'm ok. work is work. adam is adam. he was here last weekend and it was really nice and very low key. cooking, and talking and watching dvds and trying to not spend much money. i'm headed back to the cottage over july 4 weekend, which i'm REALLY excited about. i have to go to the dentist on thursday, the cats are good, it has been really really hot, there's a new season of 'blowout' on bravo. things are ok, you know? they are what they are.
and that is all i have tonight. time to start thinking about some sleep. xoxo.
8:33 PM /
Wednesday, June 01, 2005
secret pal 5 questions!
1. Are you a yarn snob (do you prefer higher quality and/or natural fibers)? Do you avoid Red Heart and Lion Brand? Or is it all the same to you?
i prefer natural fibers, i love wool (especially non itchy merinos and such), i don't really mind wool blends. if it itches, i want no part of it! i'm not a snob, per se. i can't yet afford to be a snob. there are people out there who spend as much on yarn in a month as i do for rent!! i don't like red heart, however- really. lion brand is either hit or miss. i love cotton ease, i really like landscapes, i can deal with woolease in a pinch. i like patons for a slightly higher end low end yarn. i hate novelty yarn, a LOT. i'm addicted to sock yarn.
2. Do you spin? Crochet?
i spin, yes, and i really love it. i also crochet, but not really very often. i learned to crochet when i was about 8 (and then to knit around 13 or 14). i prefer knitting!
3. Do you have any allergies? (smoke, pets, fibers, perfume, etc.)
i'm allergic to smoke, dogs (but i love them so much), fall and spring, pigeons and cockroaches (really, i was tested for those things). i try to avoid REALLY strong purfumey smells because they can sometimes bring on a migraine.
4. How long have you been knitting?
roughly 11 or 12 years, but seriously and constantly for about five.
5. Do you have an Amazon or other online wish list?
yup, i have an amazon wish list (with not much on it...). where else can you have wishlists?
6. What's your favorite scent? (for candles, bath products etc.)
hrm. i like lilac. i like faint flowery things (bath and body works peony or sweet pea, things that are kind of rosewater-y), i like fruity melon stuff (especially in candles), i like cranberry candles. so yeah. fresh fruit smells, fresh flowery smells, and really clean smells, mostly. ivory snow dish soap? one of the best smells in the world to me (if that gives you an idea of what i like!).
7. Do you have a sweet tooth?
oh yeah! i love chocolate (but not mixed with mint or nuts or peanut butter, please). i LOVE the fruity flavoured tootsie rolls, gummy bears, things like that. i REALLY like peanut m&ms (i know. it makes no sense), vanilla kit kats, plain m&ms, a good old hershey bar, and so on.
8. What other crafts or Do-It-Yourself things do you like to do?
right now i'm pretty focused on knitting, spinning and the occasional stitch marker making binge. i used to make some beaded jewelery, i used to sew a LOT, i've made melt and pour soups by the dozens, i love to bake and cook, i never really got into scrapbooking, i love weaving (i miss weaving) and needlepointing my own designs, silk painting (i'd love to start doing that again, that was a fun craft), and i'm looking forward to getting back to working with acid dyes for dyeing wool (i was a textiles major).
9. What kind of music do you like? Can your computer/stereo play MP3s? (if your buddy wants to make you a CD)
yes, i can play cds. as for music... i like... this one is a tough question.. so i'll make a list! currently my adorable and cherished ipod is playing a lot of: ben folds/ben folds five (i LOVE him), sarah mchlachlan, sarah harmer, the barenaked ladies, the postal service, colin hay, dire straits/mark knoplfler, death cab for cutie, lots of 80's new wave, LOTS of david bowie (i love that man) and queen. i also like rilo kiley, simon and garfunkel, the hedwig and the angry inch soundtrack is very important to me, i love good cover songs, me first and the gimmie gimmies, sloan, and so on. is that a good idea? i'm going to start posting the 'friday random ten' that i post in my livejournal over here as well.
10. What's your favorite color? Or--do you have a color family/season/palette you prefer? Any colors you just can't stand?
PINK! hot pink, light pink, pale ballet pink, mauvey pink etc etc. i LOVE pink. followed by red, and purple (i LOVE purple pens. i'd only write in purple if i had the choice). i mostly wear black and pink (hot, pale, fuschia etc), burgundy, and olive green. i don't like orange. i will NEVER wear white or yellow or orange.
11. What is your family situation? Do you have any pets?
i have a steady sweetie named adam, who lives four hours away :(. i live with my two kitties, njorah and jezzebelle. they are my little darlings.
12. What are your life dreams? (really stretching it here, I know)
to teach the craft. honestly, it's been my dream for a zillion years to open up a little well stocked shop and teach fiber arts (from weaving to cross stitch to knitting to dyeing) to anyone who wants to learn. i want to be happy, i want to have children, be with adam, knit, and sleep well every night.
13. What is/are your favorite yarn/s to knit with?
i looooove koigu (who doesn't?) but it is really expensive! i love sock yarns (opal, regia, fortissima, etc). i love handpaintedyarn.com's yarns, i love lamb's pride. i've never used any rowan, debbie bliss or other 'high end' yarns. i've been broke for most of the last few years (the only sweaters i've knit have been wool ease or encore). i'd love to try some nicer yarns, i really would! and sometime this summer i hope to purchase enough koigu and the pattern to knit a charlotte's web.
14. What fibers do you absolutely *not* like?
pure acrylic. if it squeaks or melts easily? not for me. i HATE novelty yarns, no eyelash, fun fur, boa, whatever. no way, no how.
15. What is/are your current knitting obsession/s?
socks. socks socks socks. finding a stylish (yet kinda long) shrug pattern to fit a plus sized girl and still look cute, the charlotte's web shawl, adapting one or two of glamypre's patterns to fit me properly (with beautiful stef's help, of course).
16. What is/are your favorite item/s to knit?
socks. absolutely. they're affordable and portable. i'm also starting to really enjoy lacework. and i'd really like to knit a sweater that i'll want to waer out of the house.
17. What are you knitting right now?
regia jubilee 'india' socks for my friend melanie's birthday present, the 'not-knit round scarf' from the purl stitch (inspired by knotology
, out of koigu (though i'm convinced that i will both run out of yarn and end up with a poncho/wrap that doesn't fit the boobs).
18. What do you think about ponchos?
i think for the most part they're ok. i'd actually knit one if i could find or create a pattern i liked enough.
19. Do you prefer straight or circular needles?
circular!! they're so much easier on my wrists.
20. Bamboo, aluminum, plastic?
plastic. (i mostly use the denise kit, bryspun and pony pearl dpns). they warm to your hands and are, again, MUCH easier on my wrists (i have tendonitis and fibromyalgia).
21. Are you a sock knitter?
very much so!
22. How did you learn to knit?
my grandmother kept trying to teach me until i finally caught on. she also taught me to crochet.
23. How old is your oldest UFO?
i have an unfinished sock from the summer of 2003.
24. What is your favorite animated character or a favorite animal/bird?
hello kitty, chococat, pucca, etc. i love korean/japanese/chinese characters like those. i love cats (i love dogs too, but...) very much.
25. What is your favorite holiday?
thanksgiving. i just love it. it has the best food and for the most part it is full of togetherness.
26. Is there anything that you collect?
hello kitty stuff, sock yarn, books, bags and purses.
27. What knitting magazine subscriptions do you have?
i don't have any. i often think about getting an IK subscription (the subscriber only content is tempting), but i've never really bothered.
28. Any books out there you are dying to get your hands on?
any books that are on my wish list are.. uh. on my wish list!
8:48 PM /
i'm rachel m, i'm 26 and i live in cleveland, ohio. i knit, spin, and read. i have a steady sweetie, two chubby cats, a full time job
and a messy apartment.
