Contests, Randonymity

Work has eaten my brain

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Scout’s having a Project Spectrum contest. You can play along in two different ways: by describing or showing a picture of the preppiest outfit you’ve ever worn, or by writing a Project Spectrum limerick containing the words pink, yellow, and green. Leave your comments by noon, MDT, April 4, and you could win a skein of Scout’s yarn in the Prepster colorway (which is pink, yellow, and green).

Ok. That’s it. That’s all I have. After sitting in front of a computer and working for 16 hours yesterday, I don’t have a lot of brainpower left. I’ll catch up on bloglines later in the week, everyone. I miss you already.

So let’s see what I have in my spare photo folder… Whoops. There’s a picture I took for Tink, who was wondering if Knit a Fantasy Story had any patterns for fairies in it. Yes, indeed it does, Tink, although I’m pretty sure that dandelion isn’t knit.

Oh, look at this! Here’s a picture of Mayhem lying on the floor, underneath the chair rungs. It doesn’t look comfortable to me, either.

“La la la la la la la…” -M

“Mom! I can’t believe you posted that unflattering picture of me!!” *sniff* -M

Hee hee – just wait until she wants to start dating! 😉

See the Sights

What I did with my weekend, or Meet the Peeves

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As I mentioned Friday, the Peeves came to Minneapolis for approximately 24 hours, en route to see more sights and meet more bloggers (Hi CarrieK! Hi La! Hi Laurie! You’ll have fun!!). Meet the notoriously camera shy Peeves:

After we caffeined up, we headed over to Yarnzilla, which was one of Peeve’s must-see Minneapolis destinations.

This may or may not have been because of Yarnzilla’s amazing wall o’ Koigu (they have more in the back – and I think that gap at the right end of the second row from the top is where Peeve had already grabbed a few skeins). Peeve’s love of Koigu is infamous.

More on the great yarn I got at Yarnzilla in a few minutes. We then proceeded into Minneapolis proper to Depth of Field. If you were a game show contestant, wouldn’t you select the prize behind the yarn door? I thought so.

After stopping so the Peeves could have a bagelly lunch, we headed down to Uncle Hugo’s and Uncle Edgar’s, where we discovered a book signing in progress. I picked up the latest (For a Few Demons More) from the lovely and gracious Kim Harrison.

Our next stop was Dreamhaven, where Mr. Peeve purchased a Cthulhu baseball cap, autographed Neil Gaiman goodies, and much, much more.

I was fascinated by the display of awards Neil Gaiman won for his novel American Gods. Sorry about the crappy picture, CV… Top center was his Hugo Award, then from left to right, his Locus Award, SFX Award, Nebula Award, and Stoker Award. Seeing a Hugo and a Nebula in person – wow.

We were all pretty tired after that, so we wandered over to my condo and vegged for a while before venturing back out for some food at Tum Rup Thai. The rest of the evening was spent knitting (Peeve and I), doing laundry (Mr. Peeve), and trying to convince Chaos that just because people aren’t me doesn’t mean they’re bad.

Sunday morning, we stopped for breakfast at the Uptown Diner, then had time to stop at the MSP Airport Post Office so the Peeves could lighten their load a bit before they hopped on another plane. Thanks for stopping in Minneapolis, you two! I had a blast, and my lumpy futon is yours for any future visits! 🙂 Maybe it won’t be raining then – as feared, it rained all weekend. The Peeves claimed to enjoy the rain, since Melbourne is suffering a drought. Well, then, they came to the right place.

So back to the yarn… On the left is a gorgeous skein that Peeve brought me from Australia – it was dyed by the late Marta, so this is a very, very special skein. I hope I can do it justice. Thank you ever so much, Peeve. I am honored.

The next two skeins are from Yarnzilla – they’re One Sheep Hill superwash merino sock yarn (500 yards) and are hand dyed exclusively for Yarnzilla. (This yarn isn’t on their website yet, but should be soon.) Linda, the gracious owner of Yarnzilla, gave Peeve and I each a skein of the colorway in the center! Thank you, Linda!

“Hmm, maybe your skein has that one sheep in it, May. I don’t think mine does.” -C

*sniff sniff sniff* -M

Peeve also bought me a lovely skein of Henry’s Attic Carrera (50 silk/50 merino), which I look forward to dyeing this summer. Thanks again, Peeve! While we were at Depth of Field, I picked up some other yarn for dyeing – in the center are a few balls of sportweight Colorado Yarn from the DoF Sale Loft. The two skeins on the right are Jeannie from Kraemer Yarns (80 superwash/20 nylon, 480 yards), which I hadn’t seen before.

“I will love this skein forever and I will name it Mayhem.” -C

“Wait a minute…” -M

“Hey, cut it out, you two! Unpaw that yarn, Chaos!” -me

Contests, Randonymity, Reading

Ahhh… Friday.

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Wendy has started giving away books after she reads them – if you send her an email before noon EDT, April 1, you could be selected to receive her copy of Past Reason Hated by Peter Robinson.

Lorette is celebrating her third blogiversary! Leave a comment about your favorite knitting trick or gadget and you could win some sock yarn. Comments must be left by midnight, April 1.

Reading Update
Innocent in Death by J.D. Robb. The latest Eve Dallas/Roarke (mmm…. Roarke…) mystery is good, but pretty standard fare. I swear, didn’t Born in Death just come out?!!
The Return of Jonah Gray by Heather Cochran. I was expecting this chicklit tale of Sasha, an IRS auditor, to be pretty standard fare, too. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that it had a bit more substance than I expected.

Life Update
Some things I’m looking forward to over the next few days – as part of their World Tour of the US, Peeve and Mr Peeve are coming to Minneapolis tomorrow and they’re staying at Casa de Chaos y Mayhem! Now, if I can just remember to bring along my camera… 😉 Hopefully the flood watch we have going through Saturday night remains just a watch…

Also, next Wednesday, the Yarn Harlot will be speaking in St Paul and signing copies of her new book. Rumor has it that there are 400 knitters who’ve reserved spots, with a waiting list. Should be very crazy indeed!

I’ve had a rough week at work and things will continue on in that fashion at least through the early part of next week. So imagine how finding this in my mailbox yesterday afternoon cheered me up:

“I don’t remember being in the mailbox, but I know I always cheer Mom up!” -M

*snort* “Yeah, that’s what she meant, May… not.” -C

Hmm. I didn’t mean for you to have to imagine quite that much. Let’s try again, shall we?

*sniff sniff* “I will allow you to accept this gift.” -C

Gee, thanks, Chaos. Anyway, Imbrium and I exchanged mix cds – the mix she sent me arrived yesterday, along with two gorgeous skeins of Interlacements Tiny Toes sock yarn in Midnight Blues! (Yes, there’s purple in there – it just didn’t photograph well.) Thank you so much, Imbrium!! Hey, I can’t get to your blog… 🙁

Have a great weekend, everyone!

Alongs, Knitting, Project Spectrum

How many RPMs can Lola run?

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I finished binding off my STR Titania RPM socks last night as the credits rolled for Run Lola Run – a perfect finish for March FiberFlix! Plus, this pair of socks is my last project for February-March Project Spectrum.

Check out how much yarn I had left – that’s approximately 7 inches. Yeah, that definitely added to the excitement. To maximize my yarn usage, I knit each sock toe-up from the opposite ends of the ball.

The sock on the right was knit using the RPM pattern as written. For the sock on the left, I reversed the pattern, so the spirals go in opposite directions. The stitch pattern definitely “pops” more on the sock on the right – is it because the spiral goes the same direction as I was knitting? Or??

“Well, since Mom’s done knitting, I’m sure she won’t mind if I steal this little bit of yarn…” -M

“Eating yarn is very dangerous, Mayhem – don’t do it!” -me

This definitely isn’t my favorite STR colorway (it was a sock club selection last year). I’m not sure that teal, burgundy, olive, orange, rust, lavender, and light blue really work together. Interestingly, the yarn in the miniskein keychain that came with this skein is slightly darker and the colors work much better. (Um, yes, I might’ve been trying to calculate how much yarn I could get out of the miniskein, just in case…)

“Hmph. Meanie. You didn’t need to take away that yarn. I shall sulk.” -M

Contests, Those Cats

RIP SRM (This post may not be suitable for those sensitive to sparkly mouse carnage)

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Elspeth is having a contest for “WIP It Out” on March 31st. There will be a prize for identifying the movie quote, and another lucky participant will receive one of E’s frogged WIPs.

Cindy is having a contest – leave a comment about any Greek affiliations you may have had in college (or just leave a comment if you were independent and unaffiliated). Comment by 11 pm CDT March 29 and you could win some sock yarn. Although I wasn’t in a sorority, I was in Xi Sigma Pi, the National Forestry Honor Society…

Sallee the Knitnana is having a contest to celebrate a comment milestone. Leave a comment about the Meezer by midnight EDT March 30 and you could win a Nana Sadie Rose sock bag (a new design)!

So perhaps you are wondering about the post title… I think a picture will speak a thousand words.

Yes, that is the skin and skeleton of Chaos’ beloved SRM. If I hadn’t witnessed Chaos demolishing SRM, I would’ve blamed Mayhem, known to be very hard on her toys… Compare the picture above to this picture of SRM, taken in January of 2006:

When asked why he would treat his beloved toy in such a fashion, Chaos didn’t have much to say for himself.

I guess we’re left to find our own answers about this senseless loss of sparkly mouse….

Contests, Randonymity

In which I show off some yarn and goodies

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KnittyMama is having a contest to celebrate moving her blog and that everyone in her family has birthdays over the next few weeks. Leave a comment with a birthday story or just wish the KnittyFamily happy birthday by midnight CDT, April 15, and you could win DPN rolls or yarn!

Ages and ages ago, KnitNZu sent me a little thank you package with a cute little bag she made (very handy for carrying knitting miscellania), as well as some black and purple cotton yarn and an amusing card. Thank you, KnitNZu!

“That card is so right. Big kitty and I will have to get that Dealing with Difficult Owners book.” -M

Blogless Jan decided I needed some cheering up and she sure knows how to manage that!

“Mayhem! Bring back Feathers McGraw!” -me

*mumble* -M

Please note that no penguins were hurt in the previous escapade – Feathers McGraw was rescued before coming to harm. Jan also sent some lovely pictures of her cat Merry, a gluten-free brownie mix (yum!), and a very cute little sheep purse. Thank you, Jan – you definitely brought a smile to my face!

I’ve also picked up some yarn recently… (I’n sure Marina’s saying “I knew it!”) Hmm, maybe this isn’t the best picture of my acquisitions…

“Stand back, May. This is work for an experienced yarn sniffer.” -C

“Whatever, big kitty.” -M

I guess this picture is a little better… From the top left, a skein of Seacoast Merino Sock, Coal and Fire, from Yarn4Socks. May’s head is mostly obstructing a lovely skein of purple superwash bluefaced leicester from Maeve at Knitting Musings (Maeve has a much better picture, with no feline obstructions – Cricket must be slacking off!). On the bottom, Regia Crazy Colors in Passion and Regia Nation Colors in Fun Nation (both from Yarn4Socks). (Yes, yes, I know I’ve already knit a pair of socks from Fun Nation. What can I say? I’m a sucker for those wide stripes…)

“Ha – I can sniff yarn just as well as the big kitty. In fact, I’m sure I do it with more panache and definitely with more tail!” -M

Knitting, Project Spectrum, Reading

Another Project Spectrum FO

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Lyssa is having a caption contest – caption the picture she took of a Japanese subway ad and you could win some random goodies from Japan.

I’m a little in shock about how warm it’s been. It’s nice, but weird, if that makes any sense. Put it this way – my SIL laid down the law to my brother today: No turning on the air conditioning in March or April because hello! this is Minnesota. 🙂

Reading Update
Silenced by Syrah by Michelle Scott. The Nikki Sands mysteries aren’t particularly well written, but I keep reading them anyway… Nikki works and lives on a vineyard in the Napa Valley and has a slightly complicated love life.
Stately Pursuits by Katie Fforde. This rather predictable romance was a quick and pleasant read. Broken-hearted Hetty takes care of her uncle’s dilapitated country house while her uncle recuperates from an operation. The novel features plenty of cozy British village life. This was one of my alternates for the TBR Challenge.
Out of the Deep I Cry, To Darkness and To Death, and All Mortal Flesh by Julia Spencer-Fleming. The most recent three Reverend Clare Fergusson and Police Chief Russ Van Alstyne novels were as well-written and suspenseful as the first two, and the sexual tension remained thick enough to cut. *fans self* I hope Ms. Spencer-Fleming is writing the next book… *taps toe impatiently*

Knitting Update
The Mata Hari Meilenweits are done! Although I usually love knitting with Meilenweit, I think this was a very old skein (of course, I have no idea when or where I purchased it…). The yarn was thinner than usual for Meilenweit and it was kind of hairy – strange white hairs sticking out of the yarn. Not the most pleasant stuff to work with, but the socks are fine – and very Project Spectrum, no?

*yawn* “More socks?” -M

I modified the pattern to be slightly less lacy (and therefore warmer). My pattern notes are cryptic, but I did cast on 72 stitches. The pattern row was *yo, k2tog, k7*, moving over one stitch with each pattern row. I think I knit five plain rows between every pattern row. Fortunately, the hairiness doesn’t show up in the pictures!

In that first picture, May was on her way to the window to conduct important Mayhem business.

*chitter chitter chitter* “Birds!! Birds!!” -M

“I could’ve had that one!” -M

Knitting

Knitted gardens

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You guys are the greatest! Thank you all so much for the cheering words. It was reassuring to know that I’m not alone in the seasonal doldrums. Yesterday was mostly sunny, and after work I took my friends’ baby for a walk. She’s a happy girl, so I sang silly songs and made faces at her and enjoyed the sunlight and exercise. By the time we were done, I felt “right as rain.” 🙂

Oh, and this song just came on my ipod: “The sun is coming to the cold places – now I can feel. The sun is coming.” (Matt Wilson, “Sun Is Coming” from Burnt, White and Blue.)

In the interest of finding some greenery during this decidedly non-green time of year in Minnesota, I turned to Jan Messent’s book Knitted Gardens. You do all realize that I have no intention of ever knitting anything from one of Messent’s books, right?! I just love to look at them and marvel at the intricacy. I mean, can you imagine having a knitted garden bedspread? (All of these pictures are clickable and totally worth it.)

Or knitting wee cabbages, sunflowers, and a tiny little fountain?

How about a crowd of gardeners?

Or a little basket of vegetables?

Gardening friars, anyone?

Complete with tiny beehives and miniscule bees, of course…

*burp* “That was tasty! What kitten?!” -C

Randonymity

Melancholy

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I’ve definitely been feeling down for the past several days. The grey, dreary weather? The grey, dreary landscape? Low iron? Hormones? The stress of work? The cumulative effects of the DST change? Lack of exercise? Dreary knitting projects? Time for a medication change? I don’t know exactly what brought it on, but there it is. I actually have things to post about, but I just feel too blah.

The forecast is for a bit more sun and some warmer weather over the next few days – hopefully that helps cheer me up. I hope everyone is feeling livelier than I am!

“Oh no!! I thought I would be safe under here!” -M
“Bwah-ha-ha!” -C

Contests

Contests! Contests! Get your contests here!

47 Comments

Stickchicky is giving away a copy of The Second Book of Modern Lace Knitting (and maybe some other goodies, too). Leave a comment before 11 pm EDT on March 22 and you could win.

Limedragon is celebrating her blogiversary. Leave a comment by midnight CDT, March 23, and you could win a skein of Socks That Rock.

Shirley is celebrating her blogiversary. Leave her a comment or send her an email stating that you’re entering the contest and how you found her blog, and you could win some Finnish chocolate.

Kat moved her blog – leave a comment at Super Guppy (formerly For My Next Project…) by March 27 and you could win a fibery prize.

Domesticat is attempting to revive the lost art of writing letters. If you miss receiving letters in the mail and think you could write two letters in the next month, let her know before March 30.

Jennie is organizing a mix cd swap, possibly with yarn involved. Let her know if you’re interested in participating. Y’all know that I am so in, right?

Good grief, that’s a lot going on, isn’t it?! I was going to actually post something, but I think I’ll save it for Thursday or Friday now.

Oh, and I’m told that Chaos and May are taking a blog vacation day. Sorry.

Art journaling, reading, knitting, and cat parenting. It's a wild life.