Knitting away...

New blog....

2006-09-13T17:48:00.000-04:00

I decided that I like wordpress better. Please visit me here:
A nurse who knits

Thanks for reading!

New Blog

2006-09-02T16:50:00.000-04:00

So... I've been frustrated by blogger a bit lately so I am experimenting with WordPress. Here's the url if anyone wants to check it out. I'll decide in the next week or so whether to switch over.

Gail Knits

Studying...

2006-08-30T21:56:00.000-04:00

Ugh... I'm studying for the NCLEX now. I am just reviewing a couple of books right now but it's slow going. And I suck at these multiple choice questions. They are tricky! I am signed up to take the Kaplan course but it starts on Sept 18. So I'm just doing things on my own. I got thru one section of the Kaplan self study. It seems like 100 more topics to go. Ugh...

On a more positive note, I started my job. I now have health insurance. Yeah!!! The downside is that MSU has not made my degree official yet so I can't get a transcript over to the Board of Nursing. This delays my interim permit. I need that to work as a graduate nurse. So they are paying me a lot less than if I had my IP. Sucks to be me right now. I almost wish I waited to find a job until after graduation. But I have to look on the bright side. I can break my leg and not worry about having to pay an arm and a leg for it. (Sorry for the pun.)

No knitting has been completed since the last post. I was trying to knit while listening to Kaplan lectures online. Then I realized that I was not paying attention. So... I am taking notes while I listen. So no time to knit!!! I am knitting during breaks and trying to finish up my Somewhat Cowl. I'm at the ribbing for the waist band right now. Gosh... so close. I hope to finish it up before the end of the month. Everything else is on hold until I get this WIP done!

I'm home

2006-08-26T16:50:00.000-04:00

I got home on August 24. I'm sooo glad to be home. It was so fun to see parts of America that I haven't seen before but it's great to be home now. Things started to look familiar in Utah. The towns were really small in Idaho and Wyoming. We had spent so much time in Wyoming that I'd never thought that we'd be done with driving through towns with a population of 50. But towns got bigger....

And while we were driving, I knit. A lot. Here are some pics of what I finished.

These two are of the long awaited Clapotis. I finished this one while we were in Winona, MN. Sorry they are so yellow and blurry. I don't know how to make them better.

Pattern:Clapotis
Needles:Size 8 Denise Interchangeables
Yarn:Lornas Laces Bullfrogs and Butterflies in Black Pearl
Verdict:I liked this pattern a lot. Simple and easy to remember. My only hang up was dropping my first stitch. I dropped it in a colum without the yarn over and it ran all the way down. Ugh... I had to start over at that point. I also made it not as wide as the pattern indicated. I'm so short that if I did, it would overwhelm me. I think I'd like to do another one. Maybe in cream Malabrigo. That stuff is soooo soft.

I've also been working on socks since they were so portable in the car. I had a couple of pairs going.
This first one was knit from the basic sox pattern in Paton's Kroy. I used size 2 bamboo DPNs. Nice and basic. I might give them to my mom if they will fit her.

Remember the unfortunate Brown Sheep sock yarn that I hated a few months ago. It's back in the form of a ribbed sock. I have a feeling that these two are going to be dark but I'll post them anyway. The yarn knit up striped in these brownish tones sprinkled with greens and orange.

This one is the Lovely Lacy Sock from the Spring 2005 Interweave. I am using the recommended yarn, Opal Pearl in this lovely soft pink. Just getting throught the heel flap right now. My first lace socks. Ah....

I know I said I'd post more vacation pics but this is already image heavy. I'll post a more intelligent entry later with some cool Yellowstone pics.

Provo, UT

2006-08-24T00:22:00.000-04:00

I'm here... so close to home. I love hotels these days. Every hotel I've stayed in has free high speed wireless service and a free continental breakfast. And it's not the traditional coffee and donuts before hopping in the car. They actually have hot waffles and fruit! Yum...

Since Winona, I've been to Woodbury, MN to visit Matt's brother and family. Then on to South Dakota to check out the Crazy Horse and Mount Rushmore monuments. Crazy Horse was particulary touching to me. Korczak Ziolkowski dedicated his life to memorializing the Native American and doing what he could to right the wrongs that the Native Americans have suffered. We took the bus up to see the monument and took lots of cool pics. Take a look.

This one shows the model that Korczak envisioned with the current memorial in the background.

This one is a close up taken from the bus.

This one is of me and Matt being silly at Mount Rushmore.
I was shocked to see how many buffalo are living in the park. They even roam the streets!

More to come... there are tons of pics from Yellowstone and for those in the know... Wall Drugs!

Winona, MN

2006-08-18T12:52:00.000-04:00

We're here visiting Matt's parents. No pics since the camera is in the car and nothing fun is going on here. We're just sitting around the house relaxing. I did get a whole bunch of knitting done. The Clapotis is finished. I'll post pics and a review of pattern. Lots of fun though. I'm also working on a few pairs of socks for the rest of the trip.

We left East Lansing on Tuesday morning and we spent the night in Eau Clare, WI at Fanny Hill Beautiful bed and breakfast. I highly recommend it. No pics since I was too lazy to bring the camera in but trust me, the rooms were neat. Every room had a whirlpool tub and there was a great breakfast included.

Next stop is Woodbury, MN then on Sunday it's off to Mount Rushmore to see the Presidents!

I graduated...

2006-08-13T00:11:00.000-04:00

yesterday! I can't believe it. It was a hard year but worth it. I lost a lot of sleep, gained about 10 pounds, and missed my boyfriend, family, and puppies and gained a new career. Yeah!

My parents flew in for the graduation on Wednesday night and I spent Thursday cleaning out my apartment. Friday was graduation. I graduation was going to be a big joke but it was actually touching. I'm going to miss my nursing school buddies so much. They became my family here in MI and it's going to be really weird not seeing them. Most of them want to come out and visit next year so it won't be so long but I know I won't see many of them again.

Here are the requisite pics...

Scott, me, Karen, Nicole, and Allison: the bastardized Oakwood clinical group.

Priscilla, me, and Jessica. Pris looks great with her new haircut!

Me and Nicole. I feel like I was standing next to a very tall tree. Her sister is even taller!

Can you believe it? I got interviewed for the local news. The publicity coordinator pulled me aside and asked if I could spend a few minutes giving an interview to Channel 10 news in Lansing. I was about to say no way when my mom answered that I would love to do it and proceeded to put lipstick on me and fuss with my hair. What the hell? I figured... Gotta make the mom happy.

Me, Scott, Nicole, and Karen. This one cracked me up.

All in all, it was a great day. Much more emotional than I thought it was going to be. I saw some good things, bad things, some inbetween things. More good than bad though. The only thing I would change is that I wish Matt were here. He missed it partly because my parents wanted him to watch my dogs and partly because he was gone so long on business in Japan and he had loose ends to tie up before he will be gone for 10 days driving back with me.

I don't have any pics of my last knitting meetup last Wednesday cause once again, I forgot my camera. Oh well... We had a good time eating lots of sweet treats and laughing our heads off. I love knitting with the gals from Threadbear and I'll miss them a lot. They cheered me on through socks, lace tanks, and many beginnings of projects. I plan on keeping in touch with them. Maybe we should get a knit along started on Yahoo so I can keep up with everyone...hmmmm.

I'm a German Shepard...

2006-08-08T15:24:00.000-04:00

You Are a German Shepherd Puppy

Intelligent, quick witted, and a bit aggressive.You've got the jaw power to take a bite out of anyone you choose.

What'>http://www.blogthings.com/whatbreedofpuppyareyouquiz/">What Breed of Puppy Are You?

I'm going back to Cali, Cali, Cali...

2006-08-08T14:15:00.000-04:00

I have this dumb rap song in my head that I remember from when I was a kid. I don't even know who did the song... But it echos my excitement to be heading back to California. I hate it when people call California, Cali. Grates on my nerves like nothing else!

But there are things I will miss about Michigan. Here's a list...

My friends at school. I made tight circle of friends in the nursing program. I think we all bonded at the ridiculousness of some of the things that went on in the program. That and I carpooled about an hour and a half to clinical with some of these folks
Threadbear. This place is the coolest store for knitters. You can knit to your hearts content in the air conditioning and have great conversations with the staff and other knitters. There's always something going on to keep you interested. Hi to my Wednesday knitting buddies!
Green trees. We don't have many trees that are naturally green in San Diego. Not enough moisture in the air or something....
Ice cream. Although Lansing is definitely lacking good Thai, Indian, Chinese, and Japanese restaurants, one cuisine that they excell in is ice cream. My favorite is Melting Moments Grand Marnier. Yum... have to get me some of that before I leave.
Parks and lakes. There's a park or lake practically every 2 or 3 miles in Michigan. The lakes are cool cause there are tons of ducks and other birds playing in the water... But the lakes are also on my list of things I won't miss about Michigan.
Proximity to Chicago. Chicago is one cool town. And Lansing is only 4 hours away by train if it's on time.
Cheap gas. Michigan has gas prices that were in CA about a year ago. Gotta love it on my student budget.
Snow. It is really pretty as long as I don't have to walk around or drive in it.

The things I won't miss about Michigan list

The weather. It sucks! It's either so cold it hurts to breathe or it's so hot I don't want to move. There are only a few days in the spring and fall that are perfect for me. Too bad it's not like the perfect days most of the time. I'm definitely not a season's kinda girl. I think I've gained about 10 lbs since moving here because the weather doesn't cue me to be active. I can't wait until I can start walking and talking yoga/pilates class again.
The nursing program at MSU. It was disorganized and the lead faculty of my program was the most unprofessional I'd ever met. She's an example of a nurse I'd never want to turn into.
The lake behind my apartment. Even though it was home to cute ducks in the daytime, at night the ducks became the bane of my existance. They honked and quacked all night long. I don't think I've had a decent night's sleep since I moved here last August.
Mosquitoes. With the warmer weather and rain, came the mosquitos. I never knew I was allergic to mosquitos until I moved here. They seem to swarm around me and eat me alive. To top it off, I swell so bad when I get bites that if I get them on my ankles, I can't put shoes on. The last mosquito bite I got was on my eyelid. It was so swollen that my eye shut for about a day. Needless to say, bug spray became my friend.
My old roommate. She was horrible. I will never live with another roommate who isn't my friend ever again.

Well, the big drive starts next week. My graduation is on Friday. My parents are flying in to Detroit tomorrow night. Yea!!! I still have a final I have to take tomorrow morning and I'm supposed to be studying right now. Oh well, my goal is just to pass anyway... I'm in no danger of failing. After the final, my parents and I are driving over to Niagara Falls for 2 days then I start driving on August 15 with the SO. Two weeks of driving in the car= no fun. We will get to see things like Yellowstone and Mount Rushmore so it can't be all bad.

My knitting group is doing a little party for me today since it's the last time I'll be able to go by the shop. Sniff, sniff... I'm really going to miss them. I'll post pictures in the future.

I'm a sock queen!

2006-07-30T21:06:00.000-04:00

I finally finished those colorful ribbed socks on the train. Here's some pics!
I also finished another sock. It's made out of Paton's Kroy. I bought this yarn off Ebay about a year ago. I found out that I can knit a sock in less than 5 hours. I was on the train coming back from Chicago for 6.5 hours. I got sick of socks and started on some other projects. Here are some progress pics.

The first pic is of the Somewhat Cowl. Almost done. Just need to finish the rest of the bottom and the ribbing. Then the sleeves:)

The next pic is of the sock. Just the basic sock pattern. I'm getting the hang of turning the heel and the toes.

The last pic is of my Orangina. It just needs the ends woven in and to be blocked. Here's a closeup of the lace.

Sorry, this is not so wordy... I'm writing a paper and just wanted to post some progress pics.

What to do in the Chicago???

2006-07-27T09:20:00.000-04:00

I made an impulsive decision to hop on the train to Chicago and visit some family. The train was an incredible deal at $18 to come here and $25 for my return trip to East Lansing.

I got a lot of knitting done on my last sock of that Trekking yarn. I'm now past the heel into the foot. Yeah!!! That's the fast part. The EL to Chicago leg of my journey took 6 hours. It was entirely due to stupidity on my part. I bought my ticket not realizing that it is a bus leaving from EL to Battlecreek, MI. Then a 3 hour wait until the train picks me up in Battlecreek. So... I get off my bus which is going to Chicago anyway and start my wait at the train station. One hour goes by and I absolutely cannot stand this train station. I am the only one in there! So... the next bus pulls in and I luck out because it will get me to Chicago. I ask the bus driver if I can get on and he says yes. No exchange of tickets of extra payment or anything. I wonder if Amtrak and the Greyhound are affiliated companies.

If anyone has suggestions of what to do in Chicago, let me know. I have my camera and will post any cool things that I take a picture of. But, unfortunately I don't have my cord to upload pics to my pc. So... pics will come sometime next week. My cousin is going to take me to cirque de solei. Should be tons of fun and I can't wait.

The heat is on...

2006-07-16T13:57:00.000-04:00

Ugh... It is so hot here. We're supposed to get up to 95 degrees in East Lansing. I know it gets that hot out in San Diego but I just can't breathe here. And I hate air conditioning because I get too chilled. So I am absolutely miserable. I can't get my apt cool because I only have a wall unit. I never had air in San Diego so I just found out about central air vs. wall units. But sitting in the library, I need a sweater! Just can't make me happy:(

Oh well, I hope everyone stays cool. I'm going to Threadbear to knit this afternoon. I deserve some knitting time and they keep it cool there. I'll have knitting pieces to keep me warm!

Stay cool and safe...

Socks, Socks, Socks....

2006-07-13T16:12:00.000-04:00

I'm jumping on the sock bandwagon, again. I actually finished a pair. And unbelievably, they are wearable.

I finished the first sock at the completion of a sock class. I believe that was way back in April. The second sock was off the needles by the last week of June. Talk about a long WIP...

I really like the yarn I chose for this. Cascade Fixation. It's very stretchy and fit well. They even stretch out enough to fit my SO... though I think he'll bust thru the toes at any second. The needles were size 2 bamboo Clover needles. I still like DPN's. I haven't gotten the hang of magic loop but I may attempt it once more before I leave MI. Matt from Threadbear is an expert at this technique and I must get him to show it to me again. The pattern is a standard sock formula that I learned in the sock class. Basically 2X2 ribbing for about 1.5 inches then stockenette the rest of your way down with shaping for the heels and toes. The only thing I would change is the color. A little color would be nice. I'm tempted to buy some more Fixation so that I can make these

I'm liking the sock thing so much I'm starting another pair. And... one sock is actually finished!

It's a stripy yarn that I absolutely love. Fingering weight so it's thinner than the Cascade Fixation. I believe it is a Trexxing yarn but I could be very wrong. I have since lost the label but I'll ask the boys at Threadbear what it is if anyone is really curious. Same basic sock formula as the first pair of socks but I ribbed it all the way down to the toes. It makes for a very stretchy fabric.

Here's another shot! Please excuse the dark splotches on my calf. They are the result of some killer mosquitos that I have encountered on the Champs patio in East Lansing. I got bitten so bad after that outing that I had to go to the doctor. My legs looked like they were weeping. The doc told me that I had the worst hypersensitivity to mosquito bites that he'd ever seen. He prescribed Zyrtec, an antibiotic to prevent secondary scarring, and bug spray. Lots of it. My poor legs were so swollen that I wasn't supposed to wear pants cause they rubbed on the bites causing them to get more irritated. So... shorts and skirts can out but everyone stared at my legs like I was a leper. Not so fun...

Back and definitely not ready for more...

2006-07-05T12:15:00.000-04:00

I got back from my weekend trip with my SO. It was soooo nice to see him. I miss him already. I actually think I got to see him more than some of my classmates saw their boyfriends/girlfriends. I think I got to see him every month and a half or so...But I'll be home in 6 weeks! Time for the count down!

We left last Friday and checked out Port Huron, MI which was home to both sets of Matt's grandparents. Here's a picture of their former homes. It's always interesting to get a glimpse into a person's history.

Port Huron is a border town with Canada so after that brief stop on memory lane it was on to Bracebridge, ON which was a beautiful little town. Basically a one street vacation town but it was very cute. Matt's great grandparents built a few little cottages on the shores of Lake Muskoka and they were sold a few years ago. We visited with the new owners. Here are pics of the cabins and some of Banger Lodge/Beach.

After we'd checked out the lake, we went to our B & B, Inn at the Falls , which was right on the river. It had gorgeous views and was built around 1870. Being a Californian, I think anything before the 1900's is old in terms of buildings.

Before leaving the Lake Muskoka area, we had to stop by Weber's for a famous charbroiled burger. Not being partial to beef, Matt got all the fun with this stop.

After a night in Bracebridge, we spent 2 nights in Toronto. The first night we went up to the CN tower and ate at the 360 restaurant. This restaurant spins at one revolution every 72 mintues! It was a trip. We got to see the sunset while we were up there and dodged the rain. The food was wonderful and I highly recommend it if you're visiting Toronto. The admission to the observation deck and the glass floor deck is included when you eat at the restaurant. The second picture is from the glass deck. It's kind of dark but what you're looking at is the Roger's Center.

The next day we visited Casa Loma, which was the home of Sir Henry Pellatt. Sir Henry was a very wealthy man (he controlled 25% of Canada's wealth at his richest!) who had to give up his castle because of financial ruin in the 1920's. He died poor and alone. So... the Kiwanis Club took over the castle, renovated it, and opened it for tours.

We drove to the Niagara Falls on Monday and went winetasting along the way. That region is known for "Ice Wine". This is made by leaving the grapes out on the vines for 3 consecutive days after the first frost. The result is an extremely sweet dessert wine. Pretty good but I could only have a sip of it before gagging. The dessert wines and sweeter wines were good. In fact I bought a risling for my parents. The other wines were just OK to me. I guess I'm spoiled being able to taste in the wine regions of California. The conditions just didn't seem right for grapes to mature properly but what do i know?

Here are a few pics of Niagara Falls which were awesome on the Canadian side. We stayed at the Marriott and got a fallside view from our window.

Well, I was going to post pics of Niagara Falls but Blogger is acting funny. I'll put them up next time.

Vintage sizing???

2006-06-22T21:33:00.000-04:00

Don't ask me how I stumbled on this one. I'm supposed to be studying right now and I'm surfing the net! Again!!! Oh well, at least I am learning something.

Like that in the 1950's , I'd be a size 12. I'm a size 0 or 2 in today's sizes. Sooo I guess we're fooling ourselves into thinking that we're thinner than we really are. Check out this size chart Gosh, I feel fat. I don't know how much that is going to motivate me to stop eating out so much. I think that's my main problem. That and drinking beer. Alcohol will put the weight on ya.

In other news, I'm a star!!! Rob from Threadbear put me in his newsletter. Here I am modeling the Lucy bag.

Of course I had to buy the pattern. Luckily I have tons of yarn that will felt. What color to knit it in though???

My Baby Albert that I'm working on as a present is almost done. The left front and sleeves are all that are left. I'll post a pic as soon as I'm done.

In the frog pond, my Clapotis. I was well into the straight rows when I miscounted and dropped a stitch in the wrong place. What happened you ask? Yarnovers stop the dropped stitch from ruining the piece. And well, I ruined the piece. I ripped it back and I'm starting over. I decided since I messed it up, I'm going to change the dimensions. The pattern written as is makes a huge wrap. And since I got a bulky wool, it's not good. So I'm going to make it a bit smaller so I don't look overwhelmed when I wear it. Which will not be anytime soon since it's soooo hot in MI.

It's true what people say about humidity. I've happily walked outside in 90 deg weather in San Diego without cursing the sun. But here, I can hardly breathe. It feels like the air is saturated with water. Which is not a good thing. Give me dry heat any day. At least there aren't mosquitos too.

I don't want to study...

2006-06-15T09:39:00.000-04:00

So... I've been surfing the web. I found out yesterday that Community Health which is the class I'm taking now, is not going to be covered on the NCLX. So... who cares??? I 'm still going to study so I can do well on exams but it's not vital that I remember the difference between community based health care and community oriented health care. Sounds the same, doesn't it? Trust me, there is a difference.

I bought the pattern for Ms. Marigold and I'm trying to decide if I want to knit this lovely with alpacca. It calls for DK weight Knit Picks Elegance. I do have Andean silk which is a similar weight but I'm wondering if alpacca is to warm for this summer top. I do love it in the yellow too:)

I'm making progress on the Baby Einstein. The lower portion and the right front are finished and I have yet to start the second ball of yarn. My second Orangina is alos progressing nicely. It will probably be done next week. Gosh... no TV, roommate, boyfriend who lives in the same town, and senioritis make for ideal knitting conditions.

The other thing I was surfing online for was what the heck do I need to do to get my nursing license in California. I finally figured it out and will have to part with $137 for the application fee, fingerprint card processing, and interim permit. What's the interim permit? It will allow me to work w/o taking my NCLX. I don't get to administer meds but I get to do everything else like assessment and other aspects of patient care. The whole paperwork process and degree verification takes 6-8 weeks. So if I want to start my new job by Aug 29, I got to get this thing in the mail by early next week. Oh... I don't think I said, I accepted a job at Sharp Grossmont working on the stroke PCU. It is a floor that has patients that are hooked up to monitors. Most of them will have had some kind of CVA. I thought this would be a great place to start my career. The manager seems really responsive and more importantly cool and the staff seems to be really happy to be there. More to come when I start.

However, I don't want to stay there forever. I really liked my OB rotation and think my ultimate goal is to become a women's health NP or certified nurse midwife. I think that births have way more medical interventions performed that are absolutely necessary and that women will benefit from the nursing model. The US ranks 27th in terms of infant mortality and poor pregnancy outcomes. Countries like Greece, Estonia, Spain, and Lithuania have lower rates of infant mortality than the United States even though we have the highest number of OB/GYNs and neonatologists in the world. Most of the European countries use midwives to help women birth their babies. So... I looked into programs. There are only 3 in CA. UCSF, CSU Fullerton and CSU San Diego. The program at UCSF looks amazing. The only problem is that it is 9 hours away from San Diego. I have a while yet to think about this though. I probably won't go back to school until after my first baby.

Sorry for the long rambly post. You can tell, I really don't want to study.

A big fat loser

2006-06-14T07:31:00.000-04:00

... my socks project is awful. The Brown Sheep Wildefoot is just a horrible yarn for me. I was making the first sock of the pair with it and it's just not my style. It might not have helped that the sock was just way too big. I guess I need to calculate gauge with the fabric stretched out. Ugh...

I've officially given up on the socks. I'm going to turn the yarn into a hat for someone's birthday. Now who's the next birthday....

Streaming Video

2006-06-10T22:42:00.000-04:00

I'm a huge fan of streaming video these days. I don't get TV so this is how I get to watch shows like Desperate Housewives and Lost. But tonight I was engrossed in something different.

This link will take you to a documentary series called FRONTLINE: the age of aids. It tells the story of the history, politics, and humanity of AIDS. I was impressed of how much and how little is being done to fight the war on AIDS. Hard to believe it's been 25 years since HIV/AIDS was first recognized. Very sobering and I highly recommend watching all 280 minutes of it.

A finished Pink Gable and more stash

2006-06-09T19:51:00.000-04:00

I finally finished the Pink Gable. I'm sure it's a quick knit for most people but I'm a slow poke. I'd say it took me about 2 months to knit. Here are some pictures.

I used a pattern from Zephyr Style calle Green Gable. I was extremely happy that there was absolutely no finishing. Seaming is the death of me! It was knit in the round with raglan arms(?) The only thing I did not like about this pattern is the endless stockinette stitching. But unfortunatly I like the look of it. The lace panel was very simple and I think that this is a great project for someone looking to get into lace without going insane reading a chart.

Here are some pictures of my latest SEX (stash enchancing expediction for those of you not familiar with that acronym)

And of course, I have new WIP's... One is a Baby Albert for my friend's baby. It's a boy and I didn't want to go with the traditional blue so I went for a moss green. I also bought these cute doggie buttons. The other is another Orangina by Glampyre. My LYS was having a 20% off sale so who could resist buying some Mandrine Petit. I'm in love with this yarn! It's 100% egyptian cotton. Soooo yummy. It's a great sub for Rowan Cotton 4 ply which I made my first Orangina in.

I do have some socks that I'm working on but I'm so ashamed of the progress that I'm not posting any pictures. I'll let ya see them when I have at least one pair complete.

These next pics are for fun. I laughed when I took them!

Memorial Day Camping Trip

2006-05-29T20:28:00.000-04:00

I hope everyone had a nice and relaxing Memorial Day weekend! I did not do any studying. So it was a great one for me.

I did spend the last 3.5 days up at Riverview. It's a beautiful campground and I'm so glad that my friend Nicole invited me. Most of the time was spent drinking beer and fighting the mosquitos. Holy cow, I must have given blood to a billion blood sucking insects this weekend. I even have a mosquito bite on my forehead. It's so big it looks like a tumor. The rest of them are on various parts of my body. Unfortunately the bugs seemed to like my buttocks the most. Maybe that's cause I have the most surface area there. And of course since my friend Karen and I were the only women without boyfriends, we got lots of attention from the single boys on the trip. Not even proclaimations of having a serious boyfriend deters these men from trying to get us to kiss or get naked. Fortunately no amount of alcohol could induce me to do either activity. All in all, good fun. haha... Michiganders sure know how to party on the river.

It wasn't all booze and river. I did get to meet some nice people. Unfortunately, I forgot my camera. Yet again... when am I going to remember the camera??? I haven't used it for anything except photographing my knitting. Oh well, maybe next time. My new friends took lots of pictures of the trip. I'll post them as soon as hotmail decides to let me. I keep getting weird error messages.

I start a new rotation tomorrow. Community Health. The MSU nursing program has once again shown how unorganized they are. They never let us know our schedule until the last minute and true to that statement, we didn't even know where we were supposed to go tomorrow until last Thursday when I finally complained. The advisor of the program expressed what I'm going to call "shock" that no emails have been sent out. We were previously told that we were supposed to have class on Monday and Thursday with clinicals on Tuesday and Wednesday. Since the first day of school is a Tuesday and we didn't have an orientation yet, we didn't know if we should be heading to the clinical site and what if anything needs preparation. So... the syllabus comes out and when I got back this afternoon from camping, I found out that there are a ton of assignments due on Wed. Way to prepare us....

Anyway, no new knitting news. I am still working on a pair of socks, my Somewhat Cowl, and my Green Gable. That's almost done. Just need a little bit more length on the body part then it's off to the sleeves! I can't wait until it's done.

No camera

2006-05-13T14:02:00.000-04:00

Well actually no USB cord to download pictures to the pc. I've spent the week in San Diego and got a welcome chance to relax! I got lots of sleep and lots of quality time with my boyfriend, family, and friends. I even picked up some beautiful sock yarn from my LYS. I don't particularly like fair isle which is what most sock yarn happens to come in. This yarn is just random muted stripes. It's by Wildfoote and it's washable wool. Yeah!!! I can't wait to finish these socks. More pics when I get back to MI.

I found a disturbing lump on my dog Waldo's chest. My mom is going to bring him to the vet when his insurance policy gets approved. I was trying to get his policy reinstated over a month ago and the vet neglected to fax his medical records to VPI. They finally faxed them yesterday after I called them. OMG... I'm so sad. Here's a pic of Waldo, Wendy, Matt, and me. His little face makes me so happy.
I don't know what I'd do if he's really sick. He's my little baby.

The new celebrity has arrived!

2006-04-28T21:34:00.000-04:00

I thought I'd never crochet again. I had my reasons. Crocheting is tedious, hard on my wrists, and there are never any cool patterns. Until I found this one. The pattern was easy to remember once I figured out what to do. In fact, I had to go to Threadbear and get some help but once I was up and running, there was no stopping me! I loved everything about this project. The yarn was lovely. It is called Kim and it's a rayon cotton braid yarn that crochets up pretty fast. It helps when the pattern calls for quad treble crochets! I got really excited once I could see the flowers. And for those who are patiently waiting and are going to pass out from holding their breath, here are the pictures.

Sorry that the pictures aren't better. It's dark in my apt and the light is horrible. But you get the gist. The shawl is huge and I used about 400 yards of Kim to crochet it. The ends still have to be woven in and I still have to fringe it. That's a project for tomorrow.

Crochet actually has it's uses. I hate it for sweaters and other pieces of clothing. I think crocheted clothes are just horrendous. But used for shawls and accessories, it looks stunning. I have a crocheted blanket that I started for Matt back home in San Diego. It was started about 3 years ago before I started to knit. I bought a huge amount of Lion Brand Homespun, you know... the itchy stuff before i knew what good yarn was. And it's just endless rows of double crochets. I think there's 300 stitches in a row. Gosh... it was torture. It was supposed to be Matt's Christmas gift. Right now, it's in a Hefty bag, waiting for the day that I'll just power thru it. Matt whines that this blanket is like our relationship. It will never be complete until it's done. LOL... he's funny.

I have a picture of my Tivoli T that I took a few days ago when I wore it out on a lovely spring day. I don't know if I ever posted a pic with me wearing it. In case you're wondering, it took 4 balls of Knit Picks Shine in Apricot to knit this. If I was to knit this again, I'd knit it a tad longer. It's basically a belly shirt.

The day I wore this, it was about 65 out. I love Michigan in the sppring. Too bad it's not like this 6 or 7 months out of the year.

I need to take some pictures of outdoor scenes so that I'll have pictures of Michigan in the Spring. I have some of the winter. Which I think are beautiful. I love snow as long as I'm either snowboarding in it or watching it fall from the inside of a window. If I'm out in the cold, I hate it.

School lets out next week and I get a week of vacation before we start our summer session. Yeah!!! Only 3 more months of school. But I'm sad because I love my OB rotation. The labor and delivery unit is such a happy place and I think I've found what I want to do as a nurse... we'll see if I can get a job as an L&D nurse or in the NICU. I have not enjoyed any other rotation as much as this one. I'm doing my Pediatric rotation right now as well. I hate that one. The idea of a sick kid is almost abnormal to me. They are not supposed to be sick! They are supposed to be running around and causing trouble. Seeing them lie in a bed almost motionless is horrible. And kids are either deathly ill with some congenital disease like a heart defect or cystic fibrosis or they have a cold. The kids who are really sick break my heart and I go home crying. I know someone needs to take care of these kids but I don't think I have the heart to do it. I'd probably last a month. Seeing mothers produce life... now that's something to look forward to everyday.

I am super mad!

2006-04-22T11:09:00.000-04:00

At my Tubey! I started knitting the body part after taking months to finish the back and sleeves. I had picked up the stitches but realized after a few rows that I had knitted the ribbing inside out. You're supposed to see 3x1 ribbing on the public side and I'd been doing it backwards. So I ripped it out... and the unthinkable happens. The back starts to unravel. What the hell? I was so mad. I can't even salvage it. The funny thing is, you're supposed to just pick up stitches from the side. It's not supposed to UNRAVEL like that. Oh well, I guess it's back to the beginning with the Tubey which means it's never going to get finished.

And to add insult to injury, I forgot how to turn the heel on my second sock. I think I have early onset Alzheimers. And to make matters worse, the pattern makes no sense to me right now. I'm going to high tail it over to Threadbear sometime to get this mess straightened out. Maybe they can help me with the Celebrity shawl that I'm attempting to crochet. I must have forgotten how to do that too. lol

Well, I should get back to studying. I have a big exam on Monday for my Peds class and a paper due that is still in the rough draft phase. I have another exam and paper due the week after that. Yikes!

A new pair of socks

2006-04-14T11:09:00.000-04:00

So... I wanted to knit another pair of socks. Problem is, I haven't learned how to knit the toes. I've knit the leg, heel, gusset, and "body". I get to learn toes tonight at my sock class. Here's what my Cascade Fixation sock looks like before toes.

I was impatient to start new socks. So I went to Threadbear on Wednesday and picked up some Gems Opal in Eggplant to start some lacy socks from the Spring Interweave Knits. There is a picture on the interweave site. They are called .LovelyLacy Socks

And here are what mine look like so far.
As for the other languishing projects, the Somewhat Cowl is moving along slowly. I'm at the ribbing for the bottom hem. It is taking forever. The Clapotis is also moving along slowly. No pictures of either one of them since I'm so ashamed of the progress.

A finished Kiri

2006-03-31T17:29:00.000-05:00

I finally finished the Kiri Shawl for my friend's grandmother. It's blocked and I have to say quite wearable. I just hope my recipient likes it! Here are some pictures and the stats.
Here it is preblocked. Lace is always kind of bunched up and yucky unless it is set in water. Isn't it funny how relaxed lace gets after a dunk in some soapy water?

Here it is being modeled by moi... please ignore the disheveled appearence. I've been studying all day while it's been drying.
And here it is draped over a chair.

The lowdown:
Pattern: Kiri Shawl
Yarn: Misti Alpaca Laceweight
Needles: Addi Turbos Size 6.
Impressions: This is a fun pattern and I loved how the yarn relaxed after blocking. The pattern was simple to follow although the yarnovers hade a way of jumping over my stitch markers. Gotta watch out for stitches that try to cut to the front of the line:) Basically, you knit a twelve stitch repeat. Start out with 7 stitches and knit the pattern until it is the width and length that you want. I stopped at 11 repeats on each side of the center stitch cause I needed to have an FO. Luckily it turned out to be pretty big. About 66" across.

I'd knit this shawl again. I think it would be beautiful in a light purple or lilac color.

Enjoy the pictures... on to the next WIP.

I want to crochet!

2006-03-28T10:36:00.000-05:00

I got bitten by another bug. I saw a pattern for the Celebrity Shawl by Stitch Diva and fell in love!!! I want this shawl. So I bought yet some more yarn. I did make sure that it was affordable. It's a cotton/acrylic blend called Kim. I'm not sure who the manufactuer or distributer is. But if should have tons of drape. Perfect for a shawl like this. Here's a picture. Click on the picture if you want to make it bigger. I know it's kinda tough to see the detail.

As for my other knitting projects, I'm on the edging for the Kiri shawl. I'll post a picture and a report on what I thought of the project when it's finished. I really hope my friend's grandma likes it. I may have to knit another one for myself. The sock heel flap is in progress. I do have my sock class on Friday so it has to be finished by then or I'm going to hear it from Rob.

I gave away my Panta. A classmate of mine saw it and loved it so I just handed it over. Gives me an excuse to make another one. I'll knit my next one to be a bit narrower. It was just to wide for comfort and when it's not right, it's just... wrong.

I did have a great day yesterday. After intense studying all weekend with only short study breaks of knitting, I aced my Pediatrics test! I was so excited. I haven't aced a test since my Fundamentals of Nursing class. Yea for me...I can't stop patting myself on the back. Just goes to show that learning how to take the tests makes all the difference. That and making sure that you read the book.

Well, I should get ready for my Peds clinical at Sparrow. It's much different from my other rotations because I'm on second shift instead of first. Each has it's own advantages I'm sure. With second, I get to have a bit of a morning to do things which is great. Unfortunately, it's ususally nothing productive. Although I did catch up on some much needed sleep. I've had a terrible cold for the past two weeks and my cough has been keeping me up at night. I've been taking this cold medicine that does nothing to relieve the cough at night but leaves me groggy in the morning. Hopefully, it will be gone by the weekend. I'm sick of being sick!

the start of another addiction

2006-03-18T10:12:00.000-05:00

Oh no... Addiction is a hard thing to shake. What am I addicted to you ask? Well, it may be socks.

I took my first sock class at Threadbear with Rob last night and had a great time. We're learning on DPN's but I'm already planning another pair. Maybe I'll try it on circs, either magic look or using 2 circs like Rob.
Here's a pic.
It's just the cuff but I think it's progressing nicely. We're using a "Knit to Fit" pattern by Nancy Lindberg and it allows you to customize the size of your sock. Just knit a gauge swatch and do some simple multiplication and division and you are off and running. Here's another pic from the top view.
I chose Cascade Fixation for my first pair of socks. It's economical and super stretchy like socks you'd find at a store. This first pair is for me. I'll make my second pair for my SO.

Our homework for the next two weeks is to knit the rest of the cuff and heel flap. I think I'll be able to do that! I think socks are going to be my perfect almost instant gratification project. I wish I'd learned to knit them sooner.
Here's a progress pic on the "Somewhat Cowl"

I'm almost to the part where you can join it in the round. I have about 1/2" left to knit before I can do that. I'm so tempted to just join it now but I don't want to end up with something that I can't pull down over the breasts! Not that I think I'll have a problem or anything...

I finished.... Panta!

2006-03-15T16:32:00.000-05:00

I finally finished SOMETHING. Granted it was a quick and easy project. I think it took me longer to seam it up than anything else.

Here are some pics. Sorry for the picture quality. I'm not a good photographer and not particularly photogenic today.

Pattern: Panta which can be found here
Yarn: Cascade 220 (I have no idea of the color # but it is cream)
How long it took me: Too long...
Details: Basically this was a big ribbed piece that was seamed to itself. There were increases and decreases going on. All in all, a quick satisfying project. I really like the yarn. It's 100% wool but not at all scratchy. I don't know how much use I'll get out of it since I think I look really dorky in it. But maybe I'll wear it to school tomorrow. If I get any funny looks, it will go in the donation bag for someone. Everyone on the panta along site looks really good. If I make another one it won't be as wide as it is here.

That's it as far as knitting goes. We've been having some unseasonably warm (so I'm told) weather her in East Lansing. No snow since I've been back. Yeah!

On the school front, I've got loads of reading to do. I'm taking Peds and OB at the same time. It's a lot of studying but at least some concepts overlap. Time to brew some tea and hit the books! I should find something to put on my sidebar to count the days until I'm done with nursing school.

Spring break in cloudy San Diego

2006-03-12T13:18:00.000-05:00

I spent last week in San Diego. Unfortunately it was colder in San Diego than it was in East Lansing, MI. Oh well, at least I wasn't cold, I got to see my friends, family, and SO, and got my mind of school for at least a week.

I of course forgot my camera so I had to rely on my mom and boyfriend to take pictures. My friend Karen wanted to check out San Diego and I think she might like to stay. Just a hunch... She found out that SD has a significantly larger population of mid 30's men than Michigan who are single.

So... what did we do??? A whole bunch of eating. East Lansing just doesn't have the variety and quality of restaurants that we do in San Diego. Thai, Indian, Japanese... All of these types of "ethnic" restaurants are either absent or extremely lacking in East Lansing. I hear that Ann Arbor has lots of good restaurants but unfortunately I don't get down there too often. We went to my fav fish taco place, Wahoo's. They have grilled fish taco combos with rice and beans for under $5! What a deal. We also went to afternoon tea at Hotel Del Coronado. Unfortunately, the only person with a working camera was my friend Elsie who brought her son with her to tea. She's going to email pics sometime soon. The Hotel Del has a fabulous Sunday afternoon tea. They even serve champagne which is unusual at most afternoon tea places.

My friend went out on a date with a guy she met on Tuesday so I spent a quiet evening with my boyfriend. But while he was at work Karen, my mom, and I hit the booze trail. Actually, we went winetasting in Temecula but we got pretty sloshed. Good thing my mom volunteered to be the DD. Here are some pictures of this escapade.

In the first picture, second row, we took a picture with out server JR from Wilson Creek Winery. The photographer was a fellow taster who loved moms and bought us chocolate port shots which are in the previous row. We told this man that we were going to the Wein's family winery afterwards and he gave us his card to let him know how we liked it. None of us gave him a call but it was pretty funny to for this guy to flirt with the three of us.

So... we spent the rest of the week just showing Karen around. She says she's definitely going to look for a job here. I wonder how many of my classmates are going to show up on my door step. Haha...

I have no finished knitting pictures. I did finish knitting Panta but have yet to seam it. If I was smart, I would have used a provisional cast on. I did make progress with Grandma's shawl and the Somewhat Cowl though. Nothing to post pics about...

I do have dog pictures though. Some from Halloween and others just fooling around. I love the pic with Wendy in the little "fur" cap and she's kinda winking. This one makes me laugh every time I look at it.

Back to reality now... I have a ton of errands to run this afternoon like grocery shopping and buying new binders for my classes. Gosh, who knew that I'd be buying so many binders. And they are all full so I can't even reuse some of them. I am also going to try to look at an NCLX review book that I bought back in December. The pages have not seen the light of day yet.

Stinky vitamins

2006-02-28T09:15:00.000-05:00

No real progress to report on anything knitted. I'm studying for my finals right now and don't really want to... so, I'm just going to post about random stuff. Hopefully, I get motivated within the next 20 minutes.

I did teach my friend Karen how to knit. We went over to Threadbear a few weeks ago to get yarn for her grandmother's shawl and she decided that she wanted me to teach her how to knit. So I helped her pick out needles and yarn. I hate straight needles but she got some Clover Bamboo needles, size 7 or 8 I believe. And I had her get some Cascade Sierra. I love that yarn because it is cotton and shows great stitch definition. Unfortunately, I found out after she started learning how to cast on, not the greatest yarn for beginners because of the "split" factor. Oh well, her scarf is coming along anyways. Great teachers make all the difference. Hahaha....

As for the color of the Sierra, she needed help with chosing a color that would work with this pretty egg shell blue coat that she wears. I of course pick out some plain grey yarn that is very neutral and that I think looks great with the coat. But Matt from Threadbear is asked for his opinion and picks out a lovely pink color. I can't describe it. It's #16 if you have a color card. And he's right about the color. Grey would have just washed any color right out of her skin. I'm always going to consult him about color palette from now on.

As for the stinky vitamins, I just took one of these vitamins that I bought from Trader Joe's when I was back home. There is no Trader Joe's in Lansing! What kind of wasteland do I live in. Anyway, the vitamins I bought were prenatal vitamins... Not because I'm pregnant or trying but because they contained all the same vitamins as the regular multivitamins plus they were cheaper. Now being the smart shopper that I am, I couldn't resist a bargin. But they smell awful. And the taste is just as bad... worse because they linger in your mouth like something died in there. Yuck! But I refuse to throw them away cause frankly, I don't eat well enough to stop taking vitamins and I hate to waste money that i don't really have to waste.

This weekend's goodies

2006-02-26T08:27:00.000-05:00

I was really bad and went to Threadbear for their sale on Friday. Everything in the store was 20% off. Sooo I walked away with some fun stuff.

Some Lorna's Laces Bullfrogs and Butterflies. It knits at 4.5 stitches/in and I got the Black Purl colorway. It's a mix of different purples and greys. I'm going to use it to make the infamous Clapotis Since everything was 20% off I was going to spring for the Lion and Lamb (this stuff is sooo soft) but I couldn't justify breaking my starving student budget. I also got some Rowan Glace.

I'm going to knit this up into Glampyre's Tubular Cami. You can find a pic here

And I couldn't leave without getting another set of Addi's in size 5. I love, love, love these needles. I won't buy them in sizes larger than 6 because I have my Denise set. I mostly knit with smaller needles anyway. I have found that I have become a very loose knitter. Typically I have to go down at least 2 if not 3 needle sizes to get gauge.

Here's another project possibility. Using that mysterious camel blend that I posted about earlier. I'm thinking of using this

to make this

It's the same gauge and I love the bobbles. The only thing I'll hate is sewing the buttons. Hmmm... maybe I can turn it into a pull over.

No WIPS are out of the queue as of this weekend. I'm studying hard for my finals and writing some papers. But I'll be done on Thursday!!! Yippy... then I'll go home for Spring break and get out of this winter nightmare. If there's one thing I've discovered since living in MI is that I'm not one for seasons.

I don't feel like doing any work....

2006-02-24T10:17:00.000-05:00

So I'm going to post pics of two new WIPS. Here's the first one.

and here's a close up.

Can anyone guess what it's going to be when it grows up? Hint is on my sidebar...

I also started my friend's grandma's Kiri shawl. I'm knitting it on size 6 addis and using Alpacca Lace weight in this deep wine color. It's a fairly easy lace pattern and I hope she likes it. I was going to do the Paisley shawl but the circular cast on was driving me insane. I decided I needed a sure thing because I want to be able to give this to Marie before I graduate! Here are a few pictures.

Marie doesn't know how to surf the internet or even use a computer so my secret is safe here...

Another quiz thing...

2006-02-18T11:43:00.000-05:00

How funny.... I wonder why nursing didn't come up. Oh, well. I have tons of studying to do today. So this is going to be a short post. But I started a new project two nights ago. I'm making the Kiri shawl and it's moving along pretty quick. I'll post pics soon!

You Should Get a MD (Doctor of Medicine)

You're both compassionate and brilliant - a rare combination.
You were born to be a doctor.

What Advanced Degree Should You Get?

Home sick today...

2006-02-13T14:28:00.000-05:00

I stayed home from my clinicals today. Unfortunately I'm really sick. I have some weired stomach bug that has been going around. I think that's 'nuff said. I was supposed to be observing in the ICU at the hospital today and felt like fainting for the first time in my life. There was nothing disgusting going on. No blood on the floor or guts on top of a stomach. So I felt a bit silly.

So... I came home and got into bed around 10 am this morning and slept until about 2:15. That's a good long nap and I'm so exhausted, Imight have another nap in a bit. I haven't eaten a bite since I forced myself to have half a bowl of oatmeal this morning before we left for clinical. I think I'll try some toast now. I am feeling weak. I don't think I could ever be anorexic or bulimic. Not eating and throwing up are awful. Besides I like food way too much. My stomach is making some very loud noises but I don' know if I necessarily want to feed it at the moment. Maybe some tea... I'm so very seldom ill that I don't know what to do with my self.

The sleeves for Tubey are almost done. I'm working on the striping of the second sleeve. Yes! Progress. I may be able to add the back on today. Maybe I'll go work on that now and get the appetite going.

I'm making a shawl for my friend's grandmother, the one we've been staying with while we were in clinicals. I'm going to use the Paisley shawl pattern from Interweave. Take a look at it here.My friend went with me to Threadbear to pick out a color and it's kind of a deep red. Beautiful yarn and it's the Alpaca laceweight. I forget the brand but it was very reasonably priced. Important for a starving student...

opps

2006-01-29T09:36:00.000-05:00

Hi all,

In case you haven't noticed, I changed the template of my blog but forgot to save my sidebar stuff. So I'll have to redo it as I have time. Yuck!!!

A working Saturday...

2006-01-28T15:21:00.000-05:00

Ahhh... the weekend. Most people spend their day doing chores or having fun with their friends or going on short weekend trips. The lucky few get to knit:) I get to do research for my ethical paper that's due this Thursday. The topic: Mental health insurance parity. Now, I wouldn't be so resistant to the idea, but we've already done an oral presentation on this topic last semester. At the beginning of this semester, my class was told we'd have to write a five page paper with 10 references on the same topic we did a presentation on a few weeks ago right before break. Why??? Does this make sense to anybody???

So, I'm doing that this weekend. I procrastinated and held off cause it's the dumbest thing I ever heard. Now I agree, nurses need to be able to recognize ethical problems that they encounter in practice. But what's the point in forcing us to write a formal paper? In my ideal world, we'd just talk about ethical issues. Or better yet, watch Grey's Anatomy. They have at least 5 ethical issues in each episode. Like when George was sending this old crazy woman who wouldn't leave the hospital to tests and procedures that were unnecessary. Totally unethical and something that we as nursing students could see both sides to the issue and come up with different alternatives.

I did do something fun last weekend. I went to the Detroit auto show. It was a complete madhouse. I got to see some cool cars including some that I think qualify as a "soccer mom car". I refuse to drive a mini van when the time comes for me to cart my future kids to school. So I'm on the lookout for alternatives. Here are some pictures. Let me know which one you think is the coolest.

Now keep in mind that my boyfriend and I are not getting married or pregnant anytime soon. We talk about it all the time but I'm thinking about practicality. I need to get a car that can store more than just 2 bags of groceries when the time comes sooo...when it happens I need to have an idea. (I'm voting for the red one myself)

On the knitting front... there's no progress on anything:( I did get to knit a bit last weekend on my way to the auto show. I knit a bit more on the back for Tubey. Here's a pic:

It's a cool concept of a pattern. Knit a few tubes and voila, you have a sweater. But it's soooo tedious right now. I hate straight stockette stitch which is all this sweater is. It's going to be beautiful I'm sure but the miles of stockinette stitch is going to be a bear.

I hope everyone has a great rest of the weekend. I will be spending the rest of it pouring over articles that I've printed off and starting my paper...

I got tagged...

2006-01-22T11:19:00.000-05:00

I guess these are called memes. I got tagged by Ruth. Yeah!

I guess these are just some questions so that others can get to know me a bit better.

Four jobs you have had in your life:
Hmmm... there haven't been too many of those.
1. Presently I'm an accelerated options nursing student at Michigan State University. That means I go to school for only 1 year and get my BSN. It's a crazy schedule but a good way to get your nursing degree if you've already got a bachelor's degree in something else and want to change careers. I consider this a job and I'll be done with it in August 2006. Hopefully, I'll be able to get another job after this is all over.
2. Industrial Engineer
3. Intern positions
As you can see, I have yet to really get a fourth job.

Four movies you could watch over and over:
1. The March of the Penguins
2. Office Space
3. Like Water for Chocolate
4. Cold Mountain

Four places you have lived:
1. East Lansing, MI- only 8 months left in this insanely cold/hot place
2. San Diego, CA
3. San Luis Obispo, CA
4. Irvine, CA

Four tv shows you love to watch:
1. 30 Minute Meals with Racheal Ray
2. Desperate Housewives
3. Grey's Anatomy
4. Simpson's

Four places you have been on vacation:
1. Hawaii
2. New York
3. Cancun, Mexico
4. Palm Springs- Most recently...

Four websites you visit daily:
1. hotmail
2. KR
3. Yahoo News- I love the pictures. Did anyone see the story of the one eyed cat?
4. School stuff

Four of your favorite foods:
1. Creme brulee
2. lentil soup
3. pear and walnut salad
4. hummus

Four places you would rather be right now:
1. San Diego
2. Threadbear
3. Knitting
4. Sitting on the couch with my boyfriend and two dachshunds, Wendy and Waldo.

Here are a few bloggers that I would like to tag:

Sweet Pea Knits

21st century hostess

Yarn Junkie

Pictures to share!

2006-01-14T19:43:00.000-05:00

I'm sitting home on a Saturday night dodging all invites from my friends to go out. I feel guilty because I haven't studied all day. (I have tons of studying to do and assignments due next week) But I'm still not motivated. I ran errands like going to the bank, the store, the LYS... Ack... I don't even have self control to stay away more than one week. So... I have pictures to share.

This first one is a shot of my giant swatch of Ambra Camel Hair. I intended to make the Somewhat Cowl with this but my gauge is way off. It is a DK weight yarn that I tried to make sports weight. The tighter gauge is killing the loveliness. I have to find a more appropriate project for this soft gorgeous yarn.

I bought this yarn when I first started knitting. I have 1000 yards of this DK yarn. I think I do want to make a sweater but which one??? Any suggestions?

Here is a shot of the ball

I tried finding reviews to find info like what people have knit out of it, does it pill, how does it hold its shape... But there is absolutely no information on this yarn in cyberspace. Oh well, I'll post a review after I'm done knitting something out of it.

I finished Orangina a few weeks ago while I was in San Diego for Christmas break. Here it is. Sorry I didn't put it on. I still haven't gotten around to weaving the ends in.

Ya know... I realized after taking these pictures tonight, that I'm the world's worst photographer. None of the pictures look the way the FO does. My apartment doesn't have the best light. Especially at night. I'll make it a point to take pictures during the daytime from now on.

My next project is going to be Tubey from Knitty. Since I really can't afford to go to luxurious yarns anymore, I picked out Patons Decore at Threadbear Take a look at these colors!

I was going to go with Cascade 220 Superwash but they ended up costing $9 a skein. I'm on a budget... yeah that's it.
And of course, no entry with pics is not complete without my little pups. Here's Wendy in just a few of her outfits.

In the first one, she's wearing an MSU sweatshirt that I got her last year. And of course, she still believes in Santa Claus.

Waldo is happy as long as he has a squeaky toy to chew on. Unfortunately, Wendy chewed his ear for playing with her toy. [Sigh}

Here's another quiz

2006-01-05T20:57:00.000-05:00

...to discover your sins. Looks like pride is high on the list but greed, gluttony, and wrath rate high on the sins likely to send me to hell. At least I'm not envious of others...

Greed:	High
Gluttony:	High
Wrath:	High
Sloth:	Medium
Envy:	Low
Lust:	Very Low
Pride:	Very High

Discover Your Sins - Click Here

The all important New Year's resolutions...

2006-01-04T13:54:00.000-05:00

Since I've been on vacation, I've been reading a lot of blogs. Most of them knitting related. I've slept a lot, ate a lot, and have spent lots of time with my boyfriend. I HAVE NOT been studying or thinking about school. (Even though I've brought books home. I'll be regretting that decision when my poor back breaks from carrying them thru the airport on the way back to Michigan. This time of year, the blogs all have one thing in common, New Year's Resolutions. So here are mine:)

My personal resolutions are:
* Exercise more- I've become a bonified couch potato since mmoving to MI. Partly I can blame the cold weather. But I need to start walking to protect my bones. I had a scare during the break. For the past two and a half weeks, I've had the worst pain in both hips. The pain then migrated to my knees. I think because I walked bowlegged to avoid pain in my hips. It was awful. Couldn't sit comfortably, lie on my side, or walk without looking like I had an accident in my pants. And stupid me, I thought the pain would go away by itself. By the time I decided that I needed more help that popping NSAIDs or ice/heat, of course my orthopedist HAD to be on vacation until 1/3. So I suffered for another week until yesterday. Of course going thru nursing school, I thought I had everything from arthritis to a bone infection but it turned out to be trochanteric bursitis a cortisone shot in each hip cured the pain. Thank goodness for cortisone... otherwise I'd still be walking like a cowboy. Long story short, exercise will help by stretching out the muscles and tendons (In me, the iliotibial band). I've been avoid any activity because it hurts my joints, which is due to "unfortunate anatomy" to quote my orthopedist. I can't do repetitive weight training. But I can do isometrics. I can't run but I can walk and use an elliptical machine. AND I definitely can't be swimming because of the potential to damage my shoulder. Gosh... what can I do? If anyone has any ideas other than walking or the elliptical, please let me know.
*Eat better- I know, I know... everyone has this on there list. But damn it, I mean it this time. I want to make sure that I don't get a chronic disease like diabetes or arterosclerosis... Doing clinicals on a med/surg floor gives me the impression that both of these diseases are a death sentance. Of course, I know it's not true, but if I don't have self control now, how am I going to resist a chocolate cake or chili cheese fries when I get one of those diseases?
*Study more- It doesn't seem possible but I need to use pockets of free time more efficiently. If given the choice between going over notes and staring at a wall, 9 times out of 10, I'd pick staring at the wall. Time management baby...
*Be nicer to people- The boyfriend says that I have an abrasive way of saying things. I just think of it as telling the truth. But, to spare feelings, I guess I can try sugar coating some of the things I say.

Knitting goals:
*Knit more sweaters- I hate knitting anything that has to be finished. I hate everything about finishing. Adding buttons, seaming, even weaving in ends is a chore. I really just like knitting. Hence, the mountain of UFOs. This has got to stop. For the past year, I've been knitting projects that had minimal finishing like lacy shawls, scarves, and hats. I did make the Tivoli T and the Honeymoon Cami, both with so little finishing that even I could finish. Who am I kidding, they came off the needles ready to wear. I don't even know if I wove the ends in since they were on the wrong side.
*Knit at least a half hour a day- But after I work out... That comes first. Both are great stress relievers.
Project goals:
*Fairly Easy Fair Isle and the Lucky Clover Wrap- both from Stitch and Bitch Nation. I love, love, love the Rowan 4 ply cotton. I even put a bid on eBay for 10 skeins of the stuff in Tear. I hope I win it! As for the Fair Isle, we'll have to see what I have in my stash. I don't really have much in the way of bulky yarn but there is always a birthday gift that can be asked.
*A ballet wrap sweater- Still have to find a pattern.
*A lacy shawl for me that doesn't turn out to be a scarf. I knitted the Flower Basket shawl... the small shoulder shawl and it's not large enough to be called a shawl. Why didn't I make it bigger, you ask? Because I bought 2 balls of Misti Alpaca Lace Weight yarn at a store in St. Paul, MN. And when I realized that it needed to be bigger, I ran out of yarn. I ususally don't run out of yarn when I make something. I ususally have one or two balls left over.
*Do something with those leftover balls of yarn. It sucks having the majority of your stash be random balls of yarn. I would post them on ebay to try to get rid of them, but as you can see, free time is not something I have much of.

I guess that's it. Really, it's not that much...

No Pictures

2006-01-03T11:37:00.000-05:00

This is starting to get old I know. When I packed my bags to come home for the break, I forgot the USB cable to download pictures from my digital camera. Bummer, no new pictures to show. I swear I never use that camera....

I went to Palm Springs last week to check out Joshua Tree National Monument My boyfriend and I drove up there on Tuesday last week and putted around the desert cities. Palm Springs is quite a lively city. The streets are lined with upscale stores and there are tons of interesting people walking around. SO and I opted to eat at a restaurant that appeared to be frequented by locals instead of the tourist... a mexican restaurant that has been in existance since the 50's. Unfortunately I can't remember the name. It was ok. The nacho smell coming from the patio is what drew us in. The fish tacos were good. But presentation was really bad. It came with some limp cabbage on the side for garnish. Yuck! I almost hurled when I saw the cabbage. But I just concentrated on the people watching from our seats on the patio and before I knew it, we were done with the fish tacos.

SO and I always share entrees which is cool because I don't get too full and we usually get an appetizer so I get to have a little variety. Serving sizes are always so big!

We also drove around Highway 111 and stopped at a casino. There are about 5 casinos within 10 miles of each other. Lots of indian reservations. It was only about 7 pm when we started getting really tired. So we looked for a hotel. We didn't book a hotel first! That was really nerve wracking for me. I like to at least make sure that i have a place or plan to rest my head on a pillow whether it's a hotel room or a tent. We decided to "wing it" which freaked me out. The desert cities were not booked so we got a primo room at a Comfort Suites Inn that was accross the street from the The River which is a huge shopping center. We had wanted to get drinks and dessert after the mexican dinner. We finally ate dessert at Cheesecake Factory. I had never done that before since after a meal at the Cheesecake Factory, one rarely feels like even looking at dessert. I ordered the Strawberry Shortcake and Matt got the Tiramisu. Yum...

The next day we drove into Indio to visit the Shield's Date Gardens. We split a date shake and bought a date sampler and some coconut date candies for part of our lunch. Yummy.

Then we drove into the park. The entrance of the park was about 30 miles from the cities. We drove up to the Keyes view and hiked to a miners camp. The hike was about 6 miles but I was hurting after that one. I need to make sure that I start working out again. My joints have been giving me tons of problems lately and the hike wasn't so kind on them. I'm going to the doctor today to get myself checked out.

On the knitting front, I'm on the last few inches of ribbing of the orangina. I stopped a bit short and had a belly shirt. I decided it wasn't a good look for me so I picked up stitches and am currently adding to it. Hopefully I get it done soon. It's driving me crazy.

For my next project, I'd like to knit this.

The pattern can be found here. I have some Filatura di Crossa Ambra Camel Hair that is the same gauge. I looked online for some info on it but apparently no one has ever used it. It's a discontinued yarn that I got a few years ago at a sale from The Yarn Lady in Laguna. I hope it comes out ok. Or maybe I'll splurge for the specified Blue Sky Alpacca Silk. It looks heavenly knit up...

I leave for East Lansing on Saturday. I don't know if I'm going to want to get on the plane and leave my sunshiney place:(

Merry Christmas Eve

2005-12-24T12:14:00.000-05:00

It's sunny and 70 here in San Diego. Not much to say other than I've been eating a ton of yummy food that I miss. You can't get good indian food in East Lansing.

My SO took me on an early Christmas gift. We spent a night at Heritage Inn. We stayed in the Grand View room and although it was overcast the night we stayed, it was still beautiful. There was a cool clawfoot jacuzzi tub which was really fun.

I'm off to finish a Christmas present. I'm making a simple stockinette hat with a wide ribbed edge for my boyfriend. It's MSU green this time. All the other hats I've made him were either too big, too small. The one I did make him that fit was in his words "beat me up blue". I had used the left over yarn from his nephew's Christmas present. Go figure. He picked out the yarn for his nephew but couldn't stand wearing it.

I found this fun quiz on another blog. I guess I'm pretty wild!

Your Hair Should Be Orange

Expressive, deep, and one of a kind.
You pull off "weird" well - hardly anyone notices.

What's Your Funky Inner Hair Color?

I'm out of the snow...

2005-12-19T18:55:00.000-05:00

For the time being anyway. I made it back home to San Diego, CA. I thought I'd never make until I got on the plane. I had clinicals and finals all during that same week and I was sooo tired. I brought my flower basked shawl and my orangina projects with me on the plane. I had the best of intentions but having only 15 hours of sleep for the whole week really took a toll. I basically got on each plane (I had 3 connections) and closed my eyes intending to just take a tiny 30 minute nap. When I woke up, we'd be landing. LOL!

Oh well, I spent the next two days sleeping. I really have nothing to do except sleep, knit, and catch up on some fun reading that has been neglected. I plan on reading "My dog Marly" which I'd bought on www.bn.com.

I was going to post some upday pictures of Orangina and Flower Basket but they are almost done. I'll post a pic of the Flower Basket Shawl tomorrow. That's when I'll probably be done. I'm working on the last row of the lace edging then I can block it. Yeah! This will be my first shawl for me. Every other shawl I've made has been given to my mom. Most likely, she'll see this one and claim it for her own.

My new computer is here!!!

2005-11-19T19:42:00.000-05:00

And I love it. I ordered a Dell and there was absolutely no set up involved. Best of all I ordered on Friday and it came the following Thursday.(They had told me that it would be shipping out on 11/21, so the early ship date came as a surprise) I also ordered an Axim X51 which is there version of a PDA and I love that as well. It has wireless capability so I can surf the net just about anywhere. I'm really supposed to be using it to store drug guides and other nursing stuff... shush:)

On the knitting front, I haven't taken any pictures yet. But I will. I started the Flower Basket Shawl. I thought I was doing really well. Got up to the repeats and saw that I had dropped a stitch and had a huge gaping hole staring at me. I had worked on it for several hours and debated whether to keep going or not. I decided not. So I frogged it and tried again. And again... I frogged this thing a total of 3 times and decided that I'm going to put it away for a while.

I had finals last week which was awful since we didn't even know what was going to be on the final. My teacher for nursing ethics happens to be pretty irresponsible and is constantly out of town. We got a final on Tuesday that had a billion typos and material that we didn't get lectured on. I managed to get a B on it. I think it's because they had to throw out a whole bunch of questions because the typos were so bad, we couldn't tell what the question was asking.

To celebrate, my class went on a "bar crawl". Basically, we just went to a couple of places to get drunk. That was fun. What wasn't was we got our first snow this week so I've basically been hating life this week. I am officially wearing the winter coat now and I'm still cold. This jacket is supposed to keep me warm during the -15 degree January days??? I don't know about that one.

There was a Silver Bells Festival in downtown Lansing. There was a parade and a tree lighting ceremony in front of the capital building. It was really beautiful and the building itself was cool. I can't wait to see what Washington DC and the Oval Office looks like.

Well, back to studying!

My mac died

2005-11-13T15:28:00.000-05:00

I've been having the worst luck. Not only do I have finals this week, but my computer is dead, dead, dead. It first crashed last Thursday. And I've been able to get it into safe mode the first few days of last week but now it won't even power on. A friend sent the OS to me to clear out the hard drive but I found out that Macs only clear out the stuff in the OS folders. Apparently something else is messed up. Oh well, the only good thing is that I have friends that will print stuff out for me and that I don't have any papers or projects due for the next 2 weeks.

I ordered a Dell on Friday. It's shipping out on the 21st of this month. Gosh... such a long time to be without a computer of my own. I don't know what I'm going to do with myself. Knit I guess...

I have finished a few WIPs. No pictures though. I'll post them later. But the Bird's Nest shawl is finally done!!! yeah!!! It came out pretty. Just have to block it. I have 2 of the Madaleine bags done. Just need felting. The only WIPs I have are the glampyre Orangina and the Ballet Top from Loop de Loop. Somehow, I feel like I need something else on the needles. I may have to cast on "Hopeful" from www.thisgirlknits.com.

Happy Halloween!!!

2005-10-30T16:19:00.000-05:00

I had a nice relaxing weekend. I didn't do much except study. And knit! I didn't finish anything but am THIS much closer to having 3 finished objects. I'm on the last legs of the Bird's Nest shawl, the Ailbihn, and the Madaline bag that I'm knitting for my SO's niece. That is a quick and easy gift project. I'll post pics when I'm done... Probably sometime this week!

I did take a walk today and tried to take pictures of trees changing color. I wasn't so successful. I've been told that it's been a warm summer and fall; hence the lack of glorious red and gold trees. There are some on campus but I didn't get that far.

This one is actually in my apartment complex. I'm going out to school tomorrow so I'll try to get some pictures of this tree that almost looks as if it's on fire.

Here is another curious lifeform that I don't get to see much of in San Diego.

Huge catapillars! These things are everywhere! There are tons of stomped on catapillars all over the sidewalks. I wonder what kind of insects they'll grow up to be.

And last but not least, I have in progress knitting pictures.

The Ailbilhn lives! It's really a pretty scarf but it's taking me forever. I plan on finishing this one off tonight while Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy are on.

This one is the Madeleine bag before felting. This is my first attempt at felting and I've heard that felting is hit or miss in terms of size. Fortunately, these are for little girls and they won't care too much about size. Color is much more important to them. Anything pink or purple goes! You can find the pattern here

Have fun giving out treats to the little ones tomorrow. We'll see how many kids make it over to this neck of the woods.

Sorta FO

2005-10-22T18:33:00.000-04:00

I had a rough week. I started clinicals at Oakwood hospital which is 85 miles one way from door to door. I only got to work with a patient for one of the two days I was there and my patient was this very sweet old lady. I couldn't really do much... just made sure that she was comfortable and ordered her lunch. She hadn't eaten for a week before I got there and lunch was her first meal. She was very excited for soup and an energy drink.

So I liked my clinical instructor and my patient. We'll see how this week goes. What's killing me now is the commute. We have to get to Dearborn by 7 am which is very close to Detroit. We're fighting Detroit traffic so my carpool buddies and I have to leave by 5 am at the latest. And we barely get there in time. I drove on Wed and had brought my breakfast to eat when we got there. (It's very hard to eat breakfast at 4 am) But we didn't get there in time for me to eat it so I didn't get to eat until 1 pm! I'm going to have to force myself to eat at 4:30 just incase that's all I get to eat all morning. If I get to have more food later then great. And I haven't been able to get much sleep because of this wicked commute. We had a full day of class on Thursday with a whole bunch of things due. Yesterday, I basically vegetated and tried to wind down. Unfortunately, I did the same today. Oh well, I still have the rest of the night to be productive and all of tomorrow. At least I washed my scrubs...

So what did I do yesterday??? Knit of course! Here's the product of my downtime.

It's the Kitty hat from S&B with no kitty ears. I tried knitting them but couldn't get the placement right. I decided to stop for today since maybe I'm just not getting them right because I'm tired. I'll try again tomorrow. But the basic hat shape is very cute too. I made it out of the Mission Falls 1824 Wool. I love the color but unfortunately hats look horrendous on me. Hence the absence of a pic of me wearing the hat. I'm sure I won't care what I look like when the temp is -30 during the dead of winter. Caution, I bought the 3 skeins specified in the book. I only used a skein and a half. Hopefully Threadbear will let me return the lone skein. If not, I'll buy another skein to make another one as a Christmas present.

The weekend was great!!!

2005-10-17T00:11:00.000-04:00

Although it might have been better for me to study, I took the weekend off! My boyfriend came to town to visit and I swore off studying until after he left. He left tonight and unfortunately, it's my must see tv night. Desperate Housewives and Grey's Anatomy kept me away from the books until about 11. So basically, I'm just doing some mindless reading of HIPPA and Infection Control in preparation for my clinicals. Which start on Tuesday. I'm both excited and scared all at the same time.

Anyway, my SO flew in on Thursday night, right after pharm. So I picked he up and we had dinner. Originally when we planned for him to visit, I had Friday off. But of course, being nursing students, we have to be flexible and Friday turned into a "Skills Blitz". We had to demonstrate how to give injections, hook up an IV to a fake arm, transfer a patient, and give a bed bath. Now all these were done on a classmate but it is still nerve wracking considering we were only able to watch a video and were expected to perform. We spend more time on ethics than we do practicing injections right now! The instructors tell me that we're supposed to get more practice during our clinical sessions. So, our schedule that we got earlier in the week said that we would be in this Skills Blitz from 9 to 12. Experience should tell me otherwise. And of course we got out of there closer to 3:30. My poor boyfriend ended up washing my car and running my poor friend and I over to Jimmy John's for a sandwich. But after the Blitz, we went out with some friends of mine to Harper's which is a bar.

The next day, we went to the Upper Peninsula of Michigan, AKA the UP. That was pretty fun. We saw the leaves changing color, which he misses being a Minnesota transplant to California. We were supposed to take the ferry over to Mackinac Island but being the big planners we are, neither one of us dressed for the weather. So we stayed on the mainland and just kinda drove around Mackinac City and a bit into the UP. In Lansing, it's much milder than up in the UP. They must have some pretty brutal winters if it's already so cold up there that I could bearly breathe.

Here are some pictures of the little road trip.

A pic of me and Matt in a "thicket". He's big on leaf colors but at this point in the trip, we didn't see the colors that he was hoping for.

A picture of Mackinac Bridge which takes you from Mackinac City to the "UP"

We paid $0.50 for the privilege to climb up a hill to look out at Lake Huron(I think this is what it's called?) What's up with all these lakes anyways??? And then at the bottom of the cliff, there was a huge Paul Bunyon and his Ox.

I tried to post a picture of a ferry making it's way back from Mackinac Island. But Blogger isn't cooperating. Those ferries take passengers back and forth between the island in 16 minutes! Also, Mackinac City seems to have more than it's fair share of fudge shops. Matt wanted to sample fudge in each of the shops. I had to restrain him. I'm sure if I wasn't around, he'd have eaten 5 lbs of the stuff. I have to admit it was good but so sweet that my teeth ached after eating it.

Not much was knitted. I am trying to finish the Aihblinn. I have about 16 inches of the scarf done. The pattern says to knit the broken rib for about 24 inches. But I think that might be over doing it. I'll stop at 20". But then I'll have a skein and a half left over. Maybe I'll make a matching hat to go with the Aihblinn. Matt and I went to Threadbear to get some yarn to make some felted bags for his nieces. I'm going to make them both the Madeline purse which are tiny little purses perfect for holding your ID, a key, and a lipstick when you're 21 or little treasures when your 5 and 6 like his nieces are. I'll post pics of those. You'll probably see them soon since they look like extremely quick knits. I also started a Kittyville hat from SnB. Threadbear had some Mission Falls 1824 wool in a lovely red color that I couldn't resist the other week. That was also cast on. I think the only WIP that made it out was a stockinette hat. Oh well, as Rob from Threadbear says, "I change projects like I change underwear."

It's cold!!!

2005-10-08T12:02:00.000-04:00

I went outside this morning to walk to the gym in my apt complex. It is seriously cold right now. 46 degrees. This is about the same temperature as the coldest winter day in San Diego. For me, it almost hurts to breathe outside. I'm supposed to meet a classmate at the library in about an hour and I'm dreading the walk from my bus stop to the library. I think I may die here this winter.

I finally have a winter jacket. My mom bought it for me as a birthday present when she was visiting this week. But I don't know if it will be warm enough to walk from class to the bus stop. It says that it is a "Triclimate" jacket which I'm guessing will be warm enough for this weather. What scared me is that I was able to wear this jacket in the store and not break a sweat. hmmm...

I had a really hard week. I had a test or two everyday, projects due and my parents were visiting from San Diego. I didn't really get to study so much and it shows. I vow to get things done early, start studying way in advance for a test. I found out that I am a poor memorizer and need lots of repetition to get things into my head. I'm much more of a concept learner but when you have 2 hours to learn everything you need for a pharmacology test, it is much better to be a good memorizer. I didn't do so well on my first pharm test. I basically have no hope to get an A but a B is doable and manageable. I will work to get a B. Maybe he'll have extra credit? Wishful thinking.

Maybe I'll get some knitting in this weekend. The new Knitscape is out and I want it pretty bad. Not that I'll necessarily make something from it but I need something to cheer me up. Once I pick it up at Threadbear, I'll write a review of the mag...

Another WIP-Aibhlinn!!!

2005-10-07T15:58:00.000-04:00

Ok... so I've had almost no time to knit over the past month and have 3 WIPS. What do I do 2 weekends ago? Go out to Threadbear and buy yarn to knit Aibhlinn. I justified the purchase by telling myself that I needed a cowl to fend off the quickly approaching winter.

And I have pictures!

I am using Cascade Sierra in a kinda gun metal grey color. I've never seen a gun but I think that's what it looks like. The yarn knits up beautifully and I love the bobbles and swirly rib pattern. The pattern is available on Knitty!

One glass of wine and I'm done!

2005-09-21T22:09:00.000-04:00

I haven't been sleeping well for the past couple of weeks. Almost since I've arrived in East Lansing. I got about 2 to 3 hours a night until last Wednesday when I bought and took 1 sleeping pill. That put me out for the night and I didn't wake up once. At first, I thought I was just getting used to East Coast time. But it's been a few weeks so I've given up on that excuse. Then I Thought it was the heat. But that too has passed and I'm still not sleeping. Since I took the pill last week, I've been able to get about 6 hours of sleep. I was soooo hopeful that that was the end of my insomnia. But no. I got no sleep last night and I was an absolute mess today at school. I had lecture for 4 hours and another 6 of lab. Let's just say that I was not the most attentive person at the lecture.

So instead of taking another sleeping pill to make sure that I get enough sleep tonight, I decided to watch the season premiere of Lost. I've never watched this show but have several friends and a roommate who are addicted to the show. I think it is interesting and will probably watch it again, but I'm throughly confused. There were people hallucinating and characters who popped out of no where. But it was perfectly enjoyable since I had a glass of wine and was knitting all at the same time. Wow, I was actually doing three things at the same time. But that one glass of wine got to me and I hopelessly tangled my yarn. I put the yarn down and am concentrating on finishing the rest and trying to get sleepy enough to go to bed tonight. I may be on my way...

Orangina anyone???

2005-09-19T21:47:00.000-04:00

I've been pretty busy with school for the past week. But over the weekend, I knitted about 7 of the 14 inches on my Orangina. I really enjoy this lace pattern. And I love the yarn, Rowan 4-ply cotton. But it's so fine, that it will take me forever to knit it. I guess that's good. Then I won't buy so much yarn anymore. I do still have yarn to knit my Spartan green hat. I'm planning on doing that while making my three hour commutes to my clinical site. Ack!!! I'm not looking forward to making that drive in the winter. I'll take some nice pictures when I get a chance of my Orangina. I wonder how long it will take to finish it...

By the way, fall weather is making it's way to Michigan already. This morning, it rained and we're supposed to have thunderstorms tonight.

ok... i'm a dork

2005-09-14T22:42:00.000-04:00

I was almost done posting when I accidently clicked the back button. Don't you just hate that! Anyway my previous post was wiped out and I don't have the energy to rewrite it. Here's a few pics to laugh at instead...

I wanted something to get a dog but I can't since I'm so busy. So I decided to get a plant instead. I decided on a parsley plant since I love to cook with fresh herbs. Three days with me and it looks like it's headed to the plant grave yard. I did water it and hopefully it's as resilient as I'm willing it to be. Oh little parsley plant, if you just perk up I promise to water you at least every two days. It's been so hot here that it just wilted. And I feel horrible:(

And since I miss my puppies, I'll post a pic of Waldo. Just because.

One of my favorites cause he has that "hound dog" look on his face...

Happy Labor Day!!!

2005-09-05T09:33:00.000-04:00

This is going to be a relaxing day. My plan is to study some medical terminology. I'll say it's for my career but at this point it's to pass a quiz I'm going to have in a week. Oh, first I'm going to walk to Beaners which is about 2 blocks away. Then I'm going to study. Beaners is chain of coffee houses that started here in East Lansing and it seems to be the "Starbucks" of the town. There are hardly any other coffee shops around except for Starbucks of course. I happen to have a $1 coupon which also influenced my decision to go to Beaners.

Then I'll take a break for lunch and come back to the house. Maybe get some knitting done. I went to Threadbear Fiber Arts on Saturday to buy some bulky yarn to make a hat or two. I've got 2 projects that are lace. Meaning, I may never finish them. I needed a quick instant gratification project and I figured a hat would be useful for winter. I ended up buying some bulky Alpacca yarn that is simply lovely and soft in burgandy, some superwash Cascade 220 in spartan green, and some Patons Shetland Chunky in Taupe to make a gift. My boyfriend is always complaining that I can't make hats that fit him. I'm determined this time. I actually made a simple rolled brim hat last night but since I didn't use a pattern it came out a bit short. So I'm going to reknit it. But here is a picture of it along with my other stash additions.

When I stopped in on Saturday, they were having movie night which was a lot of fun. A group of knitters come in to knit, eat pizza and popcorn, and watch a movie. I got to meet a few people and got to talk to Rob, who is one of the owners of the store. Really nice, sweet, and helpful man and I enjoyed his store immensely. If you're ever in the area visit Threadbear Fiber Arts in Lansing. The store is huge and there is an extensive list of classes. Rob told me that every 1st and 3rd Saturday, they hold a group activity. Movie night and I think a free knit time. Very cool and a nice way to meet some knitting folk!

The rest of the day may be spent doing my health history assignment. I'm supposed to conduct a health history on someone. I don't know anyone in the area so I may do my boyfriend. Maybe my roommate if she'll let me. The idea is to practice your interviewing skills. Funny, I've never had a health history so complete done in any of my examinations in my life. You actually ask a patient about diet, mental health questions, some even more embarassing than that. I guess they want you to get practice asking these kinds of questions. In real life one would probably only pick out the pertinate questions.

I don't get good TV here, not even the news. Our cable channels include QVC, Discovery Channel (which I like), and paid advertising. So I haven't ben able to watch any news other than what I can on the internet, which is quite extensive. I've been trying to follow what is going on in New Orleans and Mississippi (spelling?) and what a tragedy. I wish I had some money to donate. All sorts of charities are coming out to help like the Red Cross and the Humane Society. But things are going to be tight for me shortly. The people in my program are getting a grant from the state of MI. But they may be "adjusting" financial aid packages. Some people in my program are getting their loans cut back to the point where they don't have the wiggle room that they had before the grant. Does the financial aid office really expect you to live off $200 a month after rent is paid for? I spent over $600 in books alone! If you want to eat something other than Ramen noodles 3 meals a day, $200 isn't going to cut it. Add in the gas that we're going to have to pay for to get to clinicals and what's a nursing student to do! Really, in the grand scheme of things, these problems are nothing compared to what's going on in the South but... not being able to donate money sucks. Maybe I'll give a small donation of $10 or $25. That way I can feel like I'm contributing something

Well, back to the books!

What kind of english do you speak???

2005-09-03T12:20:00.000-04:00

Your Linguistic Profile:

55% General American English

25% Yankee

10% Dixie

10% Upper Midwestern

0% Midwestern

What Kind of American English Do You Speak?

Knitting pics...

2005-08-31T08:40:00.000-04:00

I haven't been knitting at all this week. I've been too busy trying to keep up with class. But we didn't have to get to class until 11:30 so I have a bit of time to post pics of my knitting progress during my cross country trip.

The Bird's Nest Shawl is still not finished. I have one more repeat of the lace pattern.... Meaning another 100 rows or so... ugh. But it's progressing nicely. Here's a pic of the shawl and a closeup of the lace. Lace always looks like a bunch of wet noodles before blocking so it WILL look better after I block it.

The next picture is my finished but unblocked Tivoli T shirt. It fits me well and I'm going to wash it this weekend so I can wear it next week.

And these last two are of Max the cat. She's my new roomie's cat and she loves Matt. She followed him around while he was here with me. She even jumped up on the bookcase that Matt was putting together for me so she could be close to him. Such a goofy cat!

I officially hate spammers

2005-08-29T16:16:00.000-04:00

Ok... if you do not have anything to say about my entry, please don't post a comment. It's annoying. I love getting comments (thank you Ruth!) I like knowing that others read my blog and maybe enjoy it. Please don't leave me comments about advertising products. I will delete them. And the more I have to delete, the more I get annoyed. If the problem continues, I'll have to take action. I don't know what action I can take as of yet, but I will figure it out.

I made it!!!

2005-08-29T01:23:00.000-04:00

I've arrived in East Lansing last Tuesday night just in time to take my Pathophysiology final. I basically moved my stuff into my room, greeted my roommate and had an intense cramming until Wednesday afternoon when I took my test with my proctor.

After visiting Minnesota, my boyfriend Matt and I drove thru Wisconsin. We made a pit stop in his college town, Menomenie,WI. He went to the University of Wisconsin-Stout. Talk about small town... It was on the historic Laura Ingells Wilder highway right across the border from Minnesota and a "river ran thru it".... haha... I've always wanted to say that. It was beautiful but there wasn't much in the way of economy there. Lots of establishments had closed down and a once "lively" mall had two cars in the parking lot. And I think that's because there was a McDonald's next door. Here are a few pictures of the town.

The watchtower of Stout

Downtown Menomenie- Not much going on here

The emptiest parking lot in an American mall (and this was during business hours!)

After we drove thru Wisconsin, we spent a few days in Chicago site seeing and visiting with some of my relatives. We saw the Museum of Art, the original Uno's pizzeria (where we had some Chicago style pizza. I didn't really care for it. Too doughy), the Sears tower, and the Museum of Science and Industry. The Body Worlds exhibit was at the Museum of Science and Industry and I finally got to see it. If you ever have a chance to see it, please do. It gives you a sense of how wonderfully complex the human body really is. And here are a few pics of Chicago...

The first one is a Picaso that we saw at the Museum of Art. Unfortunately, I forgot which one. The next picture is actually of a miniature room that is displayed at the MOA. Incredible replicas of European and American rooms miniturized are on display. The Sears tower is an incredible site and even more incredible when you pay $12 to go up the elevator and get a bird's eye view of the city. And of course, if you are a big Oprah fan like I am, you have to get a pic of the studio sign.

After we got to Michigan, my time has been spent buying furniture, putting the furniture together, buying an incredible amount of books, and trying to calm myself down. I drove my boyfriend to the airport this morning. snifff..... I had to cheer myself up by going to THE LYS of Lansing, Threadbear Fiber Arts. I touched a whold bunch of yarn but managed to restrain myself to bamboo circulars and some blocking pins for this darned Bird's Nest Shawl that is almost finished. I also got to pet some canines for which I was very grateful since I'm missing my pups terribly. They've got a whole bunch of knitting events that I'll have to tear myself away from studying to go to. You know they're twisting my arm.

Anyway, the first day of school is tomorrow and I have to finish up some reading for class. Can you believe it??? I already have homework and I haven't even been to class yet...

Halfway to Michigan!

2005-08-19T18:27:00.000-04:00

I'm halfway to Michigan. Matt and I are in Minnesota visiting his family right now but here are some pictures of some sites along the way.

This is a sight I won't miss. Insane traffic. We were on I-15 on the way to Vegas when a mobile home caught fire in the slow lane. We ended up idling like people in line for a ride at Disneyland for an hour and forty five minutes.

Matt and I at a picture stop in Utah. There were incredible views in Utah and Colorado. I want to go back soon to go camping. Maybe next year after school is over.

This was taken at Zion National Park. This is an incredible place. Because of the little traffic congestion in Vegas we got here about 2 hours later than we planned and it started getting really dark. The good thing is that there is a shuttle that takes you from designated parking stops in a nearby town to the entrance of the park. From there you take a shuttle that takes you around Scenic Drive. The whole tour takes about 90 minutes and you can stop and board at a number of stops. There are tons of hiking trails but since it was getting dark we just rode the shuttle to get the most amount of overall site seeing. The next time we come, we'll take a few days so we can hike around.

This is another mountain range in Utah. Such a beautiful state...

I'll post more pictures of our cross country drive when I get them all categorized. That is such a pain.

As for knitting... I finished my Tivoli T-shirt. I'll take a picture of it when I get to Michigan. The Bird's Nest shawl is currently the WIP. I want to start something else but all my yarn is stashed behind the driver's seat in my car. And the thought of making my way to it is not something I'm willing to pursue right now. I have everything packed perfectly and don't want to mess it up before I unload at my apartment.

After a few more days here, we have a stop in Chicago before we make our way to MI. Any suggestions for sightseeing will be appreciated!

Last post in San Diego

2005-08-12T17:12:00.000-04:00

Sniff... Sniff...

I'm spending my last day in San Diego packing up my car for the road trip to Michigan. I'm all ready just waiting for tomorrow but I find myself getting more and more sad. I think of all the things and people I'm going to miss:(

I went to AAA and got my trip planned. That is really a valuable resource and I'm glad I signed up for that service. Even if I never get towed, it was worth the free maps and the discounts on hotels and travel.

I spent the week on errands. I hardly got to knit at all which is highly unusual. I did get two new toys to play with. I got a new cell phone and changed my calling plan to a nation wide plan. That way I don't get kicked in the butt with roaming charges and get to keep my phone so my San Diego friends and family don't have to pay long distance charges to call me. And I got a new digital camera so that I can include more pictures in my blog. I got a Panasonic DMC-LZ1 and I love it! It takes great pictures and is really easy to use. Here is a link to the specs.

And here are a few pictures taken with my new camera.

This one is of me and my two dogs Waldo and Wendy.

My sister's dog Zoey loves to give hugs and kisses.

And this is Zoey just mugging for the camera

And no knitting blog post is complete without a shot of WIP.

My Tivoli T shirt in the making. I'm almost done with it. Just need to do the wast increases. I highly recommend this pattern. It's easy and best of all, hardly any ends to weave in!

My next post will be on the road or in Michigan...

Just random thoughts....

2005-08-08T12:59:00.000-04:00

I got back from the dentist about an hour ago for my last perio treatment. Periodontal disease really sucks. It starts out as gingavitis and progresses to gum infection. I had the latter. My gums were puffy and I had deep pockets in my gums because of the infection. My dentist put me on a periodontal regimen that consisted of root planning. Basically they have to numb you up so that they can dig around under the gums and get at tarter that builds up on the roots. Yuck! They say it developed because I hadn't been going in for my regular dental cleanings. Which is hard to do when you don't have dental insurance. All in all, these deep cleanings cost me $1200. I really need to find dental insurance:(

The news is blaring in the background and gas prices are up again. At one station in San Diego, 87 unleaded goes for $2.85! Unbelievable... My road trip to MI is going to cost an arm and a leg. The highest prices in CA are in the Ventura/Santa Barbara area. Yikes... It's a good thing I don't go to Cal Poly SLO anymore. Those poor students must definitely using the bus.

I decided that I really need to buy a digital camera before embarking on my trip. I leave on Saturday and would really like to have my own camera to take pictures of the sites I get to see. I've been using my mom's or my boyfriend's camera so pictures have been a bit sparse on the ol' blog. If anyone has any suggestions, I'd appreciate them. I'm looking for a slim design. I like my mom's Cannon A40 a lot. It's 3.1 MP and that's probably all I'm going to need.

Last Saturday night, I got to see some of my friends at a party that my boyfriend threw for me. It was really fun seeing everyone and I think we all had a good time. I'm starting to get a bit sentimental and sad about leaving for a year but it will go by fast.

Well, I have to get back to packing. I don't really think I'm going to bring that much with me but I have to make decisions on what to bring. That will take a while...

Oh, I got a question on the Lacy Kerchief Scarf from Interweave. I couldn't figure out how to do the increase row and wrote the magazine about that. The directions first stated to do the increases every 8 rows and later in the pattern to repeat the increases every 6 rows. What happened to the other 2 rows??? If anyone is making this scarf and is stuck, here is the response to my question. I know it's kinda long but it may help someone.

Hello,

I have a problem knitting this pattern. I was following the directions and

chart and was doing well until I got to the yarnover inc row. It basically

says to increase a stitch in the garter section by yo. Then it says to work

5 rows in pattern. This is where I get confused. At row 6, I have 20

stitches. To repeat row 1, I need 18. What do I do?

Thanks,

Gail

ANSWER:

Once you have worked the Yarnover Inc Row to make 5 garter sts between

the markers, you are going to start increasing every 6th row (an inc

row, followed by 5 rows worked even). Previously, you were increasing

every 8 rows, which coincided with the 8-row pattern repeat, and

you could conveniently increase on Row 1. Alas, this tidy situation is

about to end because the increases will now be placed closer together

(every 6th row).

"Continue in chart pattern as established, and rep the shaping of the

last X rows" means to continue the *entire* pattern going just as it has

been all along, but the shaping is now going to be worked over X rows,

which is different from how the shaping was done previously.

So, this means to keep working chart Rows 1 - 8 over and over, but the

increase row will happen after every 5 rows have worked even.

Here's how the first few rows of the new scheme will play out, just to

get you started:

Row 1: Increase as given for Yarnover Inc Row--5 sts between markers.

Rows 2 - 6: Work 5 rows even in pattern from chart--uh oh, it's increase

time again.

Row 7: Work Row 7 of chart, *and* increase in the center section as you

did for the Yarnover Inc Row--6 sts between markers.

Row 8: Work 1 row even in pattern from chart.

Rows 1 - 4: Work 4 more rows even in pattern from chart; there have now

been 5 rows worked even since the last time you increased, so an

increase row is coming up next.

Row 5: Work Row 5 of chart, *and* increase in center section as

before--7 sts between markers.

Rows 6 - 8: Work 3 rows even in pattern from chart.

Rows 1 and 2: Work 2 more rows even in pattern from chart; there have

now been 5 rows worked even since the last time you increased, so you

can guess what's coming.

Row 3: Work Row 3 of chart, *and* increase in center section as

before--8 sts between markers.

I think you get the hang of it from here. If it helps, list Rows 1 - 8

three times on a piece of paper, then circle every 6th row to indicate

an increase row; make sure there are 5 plain rows between each circled

one. Because 24 rows is divisible by both 8 and 6, every 24 rows you'll

be back to increasing on Row 1 of the chart again.

You can also use five safety pins or removable markers to keep track of

when to increase. Hang a safety pin or marker in the first stitch of

every work-even row. When you've used up all five pins, the next row has

to be an increase row. Remove the pins after working the increase row so

you can re-use them to track the next 5 work-even rows.

In general, if you have been repeating a pattern over and over you

should continue to repeat all the pattern rows the same way in order to

keep the fabric looking consistent, even if the shaping switches gears.

You mostly encounter different increase intervals when making sleeves,

where you might start off increasing every 4 rows, and then maybe have

to increase every 6 rows, and then every 8 rows. The stitch pattern

repeats continuously throughout the sleeve, even though the increases

don't necessarily land on the same pattern rows as they initially did.

Varying the increase rate doesn't happen as often in lace projects

because they tend to have straight sides like rectangles (no increasing)

or triangles (always increasing or decreasing at exactly the same rate).

However, you will occasionally see lace pieces with a sinuous curved

edge like our Lacy Kerchief Scarf. The main thing is to keep the chart

pattern going according to its original plan so the lace looks correct,

and work out a your own personal system for keeping track of the

increases when they don't coincide neatly with the main pattern.

I was really bad...

2005-08-05T18:43:00.000-04:00

I had the best of intentions this morning. I woke up and planned my day. I would go to the post office, bank, the mall to pick up some desperately needed jeans, then study for my final. I finished my online classwork. All that's left is the final. Yikes!

Well, I accomplished the first two tasks on my list. That's when the detour starts. I took a drive to Encinitas and visited Common Threads. They were having a sale today and I needed to pick up the Rowan Cotton 4 ply that Nancy special ordered for me. I saw it and fell in love. I got 5 balls of shade 130 which is a muted lavender color. It knits up at fingerling weight and is destined for my Orangina. There were yarns on sale for 30% off today. I almost bought some yarn to make another Ribby cardi in white or cream but the yarn I was looking at (the name escapes me right now) was still expensive:( I did score some Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Victorian Pink to make the ballet T-shirt from Loop de Loop. I received that in the mail last Monday and I love, love, love the designs in it. Very inspirational. The best part is i got all my yarn at 30% off. Common Threads was having their ballon sale. Basically, they hid little coupons in ballons and the discounts ranged from 10% to 50%. You pick a ballon and when you go up to the counter to pay, they pop the ballon and you get the discount that you picked. I picked at 30% off ballon. Yeah! So I got my 5 balls of 4 ply and 2 balls of Cotton Fleece for $36. What a steal! The lady in front of me was even luckier. She drew a 50% off ballon.

Knitting wise, I'm still working on my Tivoli T-shirt and my Bird's Nest Shawl. I'm about halfway done with both. I don't know about the Apricot Shine that I'm making the Tivoli in. It's really yellow. But not a lemon yellow. I tend to like pale pastelly yellow instead of school bus yellow which is what Apricot Shine reminds me of. I just keep thinking to myself that this is my practice Tivoli T. If I like it, I could always get a different color of Shine or Cotton Fleece. I think Cotton Fleece is my new favorite yarn. You can get 215 yards of worsted weight yarn for about $8 in lots of yummy colors.

On Wednesday I saw a free concert put on by KPRI. They gave away tickets to loyal listeners and one of my friends is on that list. They emailed loyal listeners and informed them that they could get tickets for a Tristan Prettyman concert on the Hornblower for free! You just had to pick them up at Henry's in Encinitas or at Tower Records.

I am so glad I went. My friend had a big group go and we had a great time. The view from the Hornblower boat was beautiful. We left in time to see the sunset. Incidentally, I am so mad that I forgot my camera. Tristan Prettyman was great too. She sings, writes her own songs, and plays the guitar. And her record just got released by Virgin Records. I bought her CD on the boat and she signed it for me! If you want to listen to samples of her music, click here I don't know if she'd be pleased with the comparison, but she kind of sounds like Jewel...

Time is passing me by...

2005-08-01T20:43:00.000-04:00

I can't believe how fast the days are flying by. I'll be on the road to MI in about 2 weeks. My boyfriend and I will be driving out there together and he'll be flying home alone:( I'm going to miss him a lot but am really excited to be starting my new and temporary life. I'm not looking forward to driving. That is going to totally suck.
I am trying to map out our course. I got driving directions from mapquest but I haven't figured out where to stop along the way. I want to stop at fun touristy spots and just sites in general. I did find that Zion National Park is beautiful and I plan on making a stop there. And I found out from some KR friends that Independence Pass in CO is a hair raising experience. It's really hard to find stuff online. I guess I'll have to haunt some travel blogs to find some neat things to see. It's not like I'll be driving cross country all the time so I want to make the most out of this trip. If anyone has any suggestions for stuff to see when I go across Utah, Colorado, Iowa, Nebraska, or Minnesota/Michigan, let me know.

Another good thing. I actually won something. Imrtistik of I Dream in Handpainted Color was giving away free Interweave magazines to knitters who gave her their names and which issues they wanted. I think your choices were Summer and Fall 2004. So I asked her to put my name in for the Fall 2004 issue. That's the one with the Flower Basket Shawl pattern that I've been salivating over for a while. And she alerted me that I won yesterday. Yeah!!! I've never won anything in my life and I'm happy to get a magazine with such nice patterns. Take a look

I love the following designs. Who knows if I'll ever get around to knitting them.

Tartan Jacket
Classic Slant Cardigan
Touch Me Cardigan- However, it calls for 17 balls of pricey Touch Me yarn from Muench. I think it retails for around $15/ball. I won't be making this one .
Keyhole Top
Flowerbasket Shawl- Of course!
Silkroad Cardigan
And the Lace and Tuck Ensemble

That's quite a few patterns to love! Thank you Imrtistik... I'm eternally grateful. I've been looking high and low for an issue of the fall 2004 with almost no luck.

I got my issue of Vogue Knitting over the weekend. Not sure if there's something that I want to knit yet. I have to let the designs settle and make themselves known to me. All in all, my favorite knitting magazine is Interweave Knits. I will probably re-subscribe with my new address in MI. Vogue Knitting has run it's course for me. I'll just buy an issue here and there when it calls for me.

Anyone hear about The fat man walking. He's walking from San Diego to New York over the course of six months in an effort to lose weight. He was walking in temperatures of over 100 degrees throughout the southwest. He's truly an inspiration and as soon as I don't have to study for this online class, I'm working out!

2 weeks left in beautiful CA!!! What am I going to miss the most?

Here's another quiz...

2005-07-30T14:58:00.000-04:00

Which you'll see at the bottom of the post...

I bought Teva Durham's book Loop de Loop on Amazon.com from a seller instead of directly from Amazon. Why you ask??? Cause he priced it at $12.10. Can't beat that. Unfortunately, it's coming by media mail. Hopefully, I'll get it before I have to leave for Michigan. I think its a beautiful book with great photos. I've heard some good and bad reviews. Most bad reviews are that the sizing is on the small size. Just like Hollywood Knits. But I guess that's not going to bother me. I can't seem to make things small enough. Almost everything I've made with the exception of Ribby is big. Even when I get gauge. Ughhhh.....

Here are a few of the designs that I love in this book...

Now, here's the quiz!

You Are a Soy Latte

Yeah, you've got a bit of that healthy hippie thing going on

But you're more Kate Hudson urban bohemian than Phish groupie

You're worldly and well traveled... and you know where to get the best coffee in town.

All your experience makes you a compassionate person - and a caring girlfriend.

What Kind Of Coffee Are You? Take This Quiz :-)

Find the Love of Your Life
(and More Love Quizzes) at Your New Romance.

Finally took some pics!

2005-07-30T01:02:00.000-04:00

Just wanted to share some FO's. I finished knitting them a while back but as you know... finishing is a bitch. I did that this afternoon. I finished the Baby Albert sometime in June. I really should keep better track of my start and finish time on projects. I knit this with Plymouth Dreambaby DK in royal purple using Denise size 5 needles. I made the 12 month size for my friend Angie's baby, who I will be seeing tomorrow. Hence, the finishing. The pattern is really simple. Garter stitch in a couple of directions and you sew up the sleeve and partway along the front. Then the buttons. Sewing the buttons are a bitch. The buttonholes are yarnovers which make them pretty hard to find. The next time I make this, I'll embroider around the buttonholes. (yeah right... but it's a goal) Then weave in the ends and you're done. I took pictures with and without flash. What a difference it makes in the way the color appears on the monitor! There's also a picture of the ladybug buttons since I love them and think they make the color of the jacket "pop".

I also got some pics of the Honeymoon cami. Overall I was pretty happy with the outcome of this tank. It fits ok... I got gauge with size 6 needles with Lionbrand Microspun in French Vanilla. But the size 32 came out a bit on the baggy side, I think. I do want to make this project again but I think I'll try to get a smaller gauge to make it a little more "shaped". Not that I have much of a figure anyway. You'll see in these pictures that I haven't woven in the ends yet. That's done now though. I was contemplating on making the straps shorter but I got lazy. Hopefully it doesn't show too much skin...

Note to self: It's easier to take a picture of yourself in the mirror than trying to use a timer on yourself...

Hump day...

2005-07-27T17:08:00.000-04:00

Hmmm...

Nothing new really. I got back from Las Vegas on Sunday night. If was a fun trip except for the very end of it. Let's just say I had a few too many adult beverages and made myself violently sick. I vow never to do that again.

My friends got a room at the Luxor hotel and 5 of us piled into it. There was plenty of room since there was 2 queen beds and we brought an airbed. Nice totel. It's the one that beams a ray of light into the sky at night and looks like a black pyramid. I wonder if the light can be seen in space. There must have been some basketball competition or convention because there were a lot of really tall people walking around. We did the usual walking around the strip (not much because of the 100+ heat), ate at the Bellagio buffet, and saw a show at Forty Deuce in Mandalay Bay. BTW, Mandalay Bay is another beautiful hotel. I didn't gamble much. I figured that since I'll be living off of student loans soon, it wouldn't be wise to lose the money that I have right now.

The rest of this week, I've been trying to study and not get to distracted by TV and knitting. There are roadblocks: this class is starting to get tedious, I like working on the Bird's Nest shawl and Grumperina's Tivoli T-shirt is calling to me (get the pattern here), and the Golden Girls seem to be on Lifetime 6 hours a day. I finished one assignment. Only 3 more to go before I can request my final exam to be sent out to my proctor. I've decided to have the test sent out to my program advisor in MI so that I'll have more time to study. I've decided that I hate online classes. Hate them with a passion. It's hard to concentrate and know what is important. I have no focus and seem to be distracted by ANYTHING!

I cast on for the Tivoli t-shirt. So far so good. I'm knitting it with size 5 denise needles and Knit Picks Shine in Apricot. I don't like the color as much as when I bought it but it will work. If I like the pattern, I'll probably knit another one in a different color. Maybe a lilac or red yarn. Knit Picks has both these colors in Shine. Or I may use Microspun again.

As for the Bird's Nest, I think I'm progressing nicely. It still looks like a rolled up wad of newspaper but from what I'm reading, lace looks like that until you block it. My Charlotte didn't look like a wet dish rag after I got done with it but it still looked much better after blocking.

The internet is also a constant distraction. I've decided that the next shawl that I want to knit is the Flower Basket Shawl. The pattern was in the Fall 2004 Interweave but I can't find that issue anywhere. The pattern is a Fibertrends pattern and I'll try to find it the next time I go to Common Threads Here's a looksee at the shawl.

I haven't decided what color to make it yet. I do like that neutral tan color used in the sample, but I saw some Misti Alpaca in red or light green that I think would be perfect for this pattern. I was so tempted to buy some yarn and start this project but I decided that I need to finish the Bird's Nest first.

It's getting hot in here...

2005-07-21T18:06:00.000-04:00

I never thought I'd say this but it's almost too hot to knit in San Diego. I live in Rancho Bernardo which is supposed to be around 100 degrees today. For those who don't know, it's inland. It's pretty icky to go outside today.

Needless to say, in this heat I haven't been knitting much. Yesterday, I took a test for my online class that was proctored by one of my friends who works at UCSD. And since I was on the coast, decided to head up to Common Threads in Encinitas. Every time I walk into there, I think to myself, I'm going to miss this LYS sooo much. They are super sweet and have a great selection and great prices. My dream is to open a store just like them. Here's the converssation that went on in my head.

Me: Hmmm... since I'm on the 5, I should head up to Common Threads. I need to pick up some size 2 Addi's and some Rowan cotton 4 ply for Orangina.

Conscience: Well, you still have a few WIPS. What do you need with another one? If you go, you'll have two more WIPs.

Me: But I it's only 20 miles away. I'll just have a looksee...

So I get there and Nancy, the owner, had put some Addi's aside for me so I didn't have to go hunting around for that. So I happily looked around for some Rowan 4 ply cotton. They didn't have the colors I wanted so I checked out the Rowan Glace. Too thick for the Orangina:( I was so sad because they had a pretty pumpkin shade that I would have loved. Nancy did put the 4 ply on order for me and it will be in next week. So I knitted for a few hours with some ladies who stop in every once in a while and knit at the shop. That was pretty fun. When I go into the store to pick up the yarn, I'm going to cast on for the orangina. Here's the color of the 4 ply that I ordered and a pictue of Orangina. I'm sooo excited.

I'm currently knitting the Bird's Nest shawl from Folk Shawls. It's a fun pattern but you cast on 376 stitches and work your way up. It's pretty slow going and I'm done with the repeat. Only 3 more to go! I may not get this finished until winter but it will be worth it when I'm done. I wish I had my digital camera so i could show an in progress pic. Maybe next week.

Since I've been home, I've been watching a lot of the news lately and the big scandel here is that 3 council members of the city of San Diego have been convicted of accepting bribes to overturn the "no touch" ordinance at strip clubs. Now, I have no problems with strip clubs. If men want to go spend their hard earned money at a strip club for dances from girls who could give a rat's ass about them, then they have the right to do that. No one said that politicians should take away people's right to be stupid. But when elected officials swear to serve the people honestly, then I have a problem. When Micheal Zucchet and Ralph Inzunza resigned the maintain that they were only doing business as usual. And that the bribes were designated for "official campaign funds". Yeah right. No wonder the public has no confidence in our government. We can't trust anyone to do anything honestly.

I woke up this morning to news about an attempted bombing in London. Gosh, these people never stop. I feel for the people of London and hope that their wills are not broken. It must be tough to go through this twice in two weeks.

What kind of yarn are you?

2005-07-13T00:40:00.000-04:00

In case you haven't noticed I like these little quizzes... I'm mohair. What are you???

You are Mohair.
You are a warm and fuzzy type who works well with
others, doing your share without being too
weighty. You can be stubborn and absolutely
refuse to change your position once it is set,
but that's okay since you are good at covering
up your mistakes.

What kind of yarn are you?
brought to you by Quizilla

Here's some pictures...

2005-07-12T16:36:00.000-04:00

I decided to post some pictures of my some new additions to my stash and a WIP. Here's a pic of all my yarn that I received in the mail last week.

The first picture is a shot of all my yarn together. That was fun. If you head over to the black yarn that's some Fortissma Cotton Sock yarn in black that I plan on using for socks. The next shot is 2 skeins of Paton's Kroy Sock Yarn , also for socks. I bought both yarns from Ebay but from different vendors. I won both auctions back in the last week in June and just got them yesterday! I had no idea that it took that long for something to get shipped. I've had shipments from Elann come in 3 days and they're in Canada... The last two pics are of some lace weight wool that I got from www.handpaintedyarn.com. It's the roanoke shade and what a difference flash makes in the images. It actually looks more like the picture on the left. But it's beautiful yarn and a fairly inexpensive price. I got 3 hanks of wool at $5.85 a hank. Including shipping it came out to around $20. One thing...when I opened the package, the yarn was damp and smelled of vinegar. I guess they just got done dyeing it.

I also have several pictues of my honeymoon cami. I'm knitting it with French Vanilla Microspun and size 6 Denise Interchangeables. I'm pretty happy with the way its come out.

One more inch of knitting and I'll be ready to shape the V-neck and back. Here are some closeups of the lace edging...

I might be able to show off and FO at the end of the week.

And for good measure, I thought I'd post a pic of my babies sleeping. Which is what I wish I could do. Don't you wonder what dogs do with their day??? Chase some lizards, meander to the food bowl, bark at imagined intruders... Sometimes I wish I was a dog.

Opps...

2005-07-12T01:34:00.000-04:00

I changed my template. I like this one a lot better but now I have to repost my links. I think it looks a lot cleaner than my other one. I am using a Mac now and this template doesn't look as messed up as my other one. What do you think?

Honeymoon Cami

2005-07-11T11:08:00.000-04:00

I decided to put Angelina to rest for a while. I couldn't stand all the ribbing. There were soooo many stitches and I was going crazy. The last straw was when I misread the pattern. To shape the front, the instructions were to start decreasing every other row from the neck side. I took that as decrease every other neck side row. So I decreased every 6 stitches instead of every 3. Grrr... I ended up with a 9 inch front and I hadn't even done the decreases on every row. (The front was supposed to be 7 inches long) I didn't have the heart to frog it and start the front over just yet. I'll let it stew for a few months. It really is a hot and itchy yarn to be dealing with this time of year anyway.

I did cast on for my Honeymoon Cami and I'm very pleased at how this is turning out. I am using Lionbrand Microspun (gasp!) in French Vanilla. I got gauge with my size 6 denise interchangeable needles. Microspun is kinda splitty but no more splitty than other yarns and it knits up soft! I've read horrendous reviews on KR about this yarn which is why I haven't tried using it until now. I'm going to probably use it in the future. Maybe on another Ribby Cardi!

This pattern is available on www.knitty.com/ISSUEspring04/PATThoneymoon.html. So far I love it! It's knit in the round so I avoid seaming it and it's a quick knit. I'll post some pictures as soon as I get in contact with my camera. I'll probably be able to wear it this weekend.

I also finished another Baby Albert for a friend's baby. All that's left on that one is seaming it (ugh!) and sewing these cute lady bug buttons that I found at my LYS.

I've found another past time to eat into my studying time. Blog reading. I've been reading them for hours a day. Here are two that I really like. www.crazyauntpurl.com and www.alltangledup.com. Both have some interesting takes on knitting. If you're looking to make a hat without a pattern go to crazy aunt purl's site. She has a "method" that I'm going to try soon. alltangledup is in UK and thank goodness she didn't get hurt in the bombing. I'll post more blogs up on my sidebar when I get a chance. There are some really cool blogs out there that I feel like mine sucks. But it will get there. I'm sure that these things take time to figure out what you want to put on them.

I'm a sock!

2005-07-07T02:31:00.000-04:00

You are a sock.

You are a cozy, fuzzy, warm-hearted person. A lot of your friends describe you as a hopeless romantic. You fall for the opposite sex very easily. But be careful, because usually you don't know what you are getting into, and because you are very sensitive, you can get hurt... especially in early relationships. Also, don't exclude the cold-hearted from your "want-list", because they just might be looking for a kind person to warm up their heart.... or a sock to warm up their feet.

Most compatible with: Toilet Paper.

Click here -- What Random Object Represents Your Inner Self?

A dear friend sent me a link to this quiz. I actually take the "sock" generalization as a complement. I comfort and warm people. Isn't it ironic that it's a random item that can be knit??? I think it's a sign. When my sock yarn gets delivered, I'm casting on for my first pair of socks.

My boyfriend just took the quiz. He's toilet paper!!! We were made for each other. Hehe...

Too much yarn

2005-06-29T13:26:00.000-04:00

I bought a lot of yarn that I shouldn't have. Here are my offenses:

Yesterday I ordered some Lace weight wool from http://www.handpaintedyarn.com/ in Roanoke, which is a dark brown. I'm planning on using that for the Bird's Nest shawl from Folk Shawls. Spent around $20 for 2600 yarnds of lace wool.
I won an eBay auction for 2 balls of Fortissima Cotton Sock Yarn in Black. I paid $11.50 including shipping. So I guess I'll try my hand at sock knitting.
I was surfing the net last night and found the Honeymoon Cami knit along and was inspired to knit my own. I booked over to Michael's to get some Lionbrand Microspun. I've always wanted to try it but was put off by the reviews. There were some finished Cami's in the Knit Along that looked great in Microspun. I bought 3 balls of french vanilla. Maybe I'll start this weekend. Spent around $10.
I'm in another auction where I'm currently the highest bidder for some Paton's Kroy sock yarn. I bid $6.50 for 2 skeins. Wonder if I'll win that one.

Thank goodness that's all I bought. Under $50 for 3 projects. I'd say that's a great deal. Unfortunately I have enough yarn for at least 50 projects. But as I rationalized to myself, I don't have any yarnto make any summery knits... I need to be able to wear something before it snows:)

No finished projects this week. I do think I'm on the home stretch for the Angelina jacket. I'm on the neck and shoulder shaping. After that lace edging and I'm done. The worst of the torture is over. White Lies Designs really does have some wonderful looking patterns. Executing them is something that I don't look forward to. I don't know if I'll ever make another one because of the enormous amount of fine knitting on tiny needles. But who knows. Maybe it's like birth. You forget about the pain after your first look at your creation.

How sinful are you???

2005-06-26T01:55:00.000-04:00

Here's how sinful I am...

Your Deadly Sins

Sloth: 80%

Gluttony: 20%

Pride: 20%

Wrath: 20%

Envy: 0%

Greed: 0%

Lust: 0%

Chance You'll Go to Hell: 20%

You will die with your hand down your underwear, watching Star Trek.

How Sinful Are You?

Ribby Cardigan Finished!!!

2005-06-24T14:35:00.000-04:00

I finally finished my Ribby Cardigan!!!! Yeah. I was so excited to have something finished that I could actually wear. I had made a sweater before from the Yarn Girl's Guide to Simple Knits but I seamed it so badly that it was lumpy. I have yet to frog it to make something else...

I knit my Ribby using a pattern available from Chicknits.com. It was a really simple well written pattern and I enjoyed knitting it. I ordered 10 skeins of Peruvian Highland Wool from Elann.com and still have a ball and a half left. I haven't put the zipper in yet. A friend of mine is going to help me do that this weekend.

The one thing I hated was seaming this sweater. My last seaming experience was horrible so of course, I procrastinated with this sweater. I actually finished knitting this sweater in about a month and a half but just got around to seaming it this week. I decided to do something different. I looked up the different finishing techniques in Stitch N Bitch and decided to follow those. And boy did that work. It looked beautiful after I was done.

The only think I would have done differently was make it a tad longer. It hits the top of my hip and maybe an inch longer would look better. But it's already knit up and I didn't want to redo it. I could live with this. I am going to make another except longer of course. Maybe I'll make it up in two tones of purple or Burgundy.

This goal is done. I am still plugging away at Angelina and the purple Baby Einstein. I cast on for the Hourglass sweater. I was going to use Knit Pick's Shine in Apricot but I decided to save it for the Tivoli Shirt. I'm making the Hourglass sweater in Cottonease instead. I am having a hard time getting gauge. The sweater maybe a bit big but I didn't want to use the Shine because I only ordered 8 skeins to make the small. What I didn't realize is that Shine is not a very elastic yarn and I didn't want to rip my sweater to get it over my head. My gauge is close on the Cottonease though. I'm averaging 17 st/in. And I want to get to 18. Just under the gauge specified in the pattern. That should get me a sweater that has a bust measurement in the 35" range instead of 33". My bust measures 34" so I'm at that weird inbetween size. I probably did have enough to make it out of Shine but I didn't want to take the chance of knitting it all up and not having enough yarn to make the collar!

Here are some pics of the Ribby Cardi. My dog Waldo particularly liked this sweater. Wherever I set it down he would sniff or even lie down on it like it was his blanket! I wonder if wool is like catnips for dogs....

Some pics to enjoy....

2005-06-22T15:47:00.000-04:00

Here are a few pics that I managed to download finally. There are more but having a dialup connection is not the fastest way to do things. There's a few from MSU and two pics of my darling pups, Waldo and Wendy! Enjoy!!!

Me in a park on the MSU campus

Watchtower at MSU

Wendy in her Doggles

Waldo who's happy he avoided wearing clothes.

I am coveting this yarn!!!

2005-06-20T21:17:00.000-04:00

I was purusing the Elann website again. I check Elann almost every day scouring the site for good deals. Which is a bad idea for me. I have a huge stash and not enough time to knit it all. I have been known to buy yarn impulsively especially from online sources and can't bring it all with me to Michigan:( But this yarn is so pretty. http://secure.elann.com/productdisp.asp?NAME=Silk+City+Spaghetti+Cones&Cat=NEW&ProductType=5&Count=1

Fortunately I don't like the colors that are listed on the website so my credit card is safe for now.

I spent the day in jury duty so while waiting to get assigned to a case, I got the bottom half of another Baby Albert finished. I probably would have gotten more done but I didn't bring anymore yarn. I have to go back tomorrow so I will probably get the rest of the coat done. Baby Albert is a quick satisfying knit when you want instant gratification. Mothers also love it. I hate finishing so much that I'm sorely tempted to make only baby sweaters so I can get projects done faster. Hopefully, I don't start doing that.

I do love making shawls. I might start the Bella poncho from Fibertrends in the next couple of days. It's so pretty and I like knitting lace. The Ene scarf is the one thing that I can't bring myself to cast on again. Casting on 375 stitches seems like so much punishment but I think it's the prettiest thing.

Off to knit a bit more on my Angelina jacket... it seems like this one is going on forever. But I am determined to finish it.

Goals for this week:

Continue knitting Angelina
Seam Ribbi Cardi... I know that's been a goal for the past month at least.
Finish Baby Albert

Back from East Lansing

2005-06-15T10:21:00.000-04:00

I spent Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday in MI looking for a place to live while I'm going to school. So far I found a few places with possibilities and a potential roommate. The rent is much cheaper than in CA. You can get a 2 bedroom place for about $800. That's a 1 bedroom apt here in San Diego. But most of the apartments are fairly old. I heard from a retired professor that I met that the city is placing a rental hold on properties. No additional rental licenses will be issued to curb rental property growth.

The town and campus were charming. The town of East Lansing reminded me of San Luis Obispo, CA where I did my first degree. It caters to mostly a student clientele and there were lots of fun bars and restaurants close to campus. The university was started in 1855 as an agricultural school and there were many old historic buildings. Matt and I went to the museum and found lots of fun facts about the college. I did find out this weekend that MSU is the rival school for matt's college major of packaging engineering and we had a good laugh about this coincidence.

Besides school, the nearby capital city of Lansing has a knitting attraction.... Threadbear Arts. Here's a link... www.threadbearfiberarts.com This store was huge and had almost any yarn I can think of. Such a dangerous place to have only a few miles from my new home. I wanted to browse for hours looking at everything. Unfortunately, the only things that entertained Matt there were the two dogs who apparently have free roam of the store. They were so cute, following us and asking to be pet as I wandered the store. We left after 15 minutes of furious browsing and I will return!!! hmmm... wonder if there is a sock class to taught in the fall???

The one thing that I may have trouble with is the weather. It was very HUMID and HOT!!! About 80 degrees all day and night and sticky. Definitely not something that I'm used to. The Midwest seems to have extremes in weather. California is ideal in that it has temperate weather year round. Actually, today is a bit cool and overcast... a welcome rest from the heat of MI.

On the knitting front, I brought my Angelina Jacket to MI with me to knit on the plane... It's such slow knitting... endless 2x2 ribbing that seems like it will go on forever. I did make progress though. 5 inches of the sleeves was knitted. Only six more then I can go on to the neck shaping. The other knitting projects have been sadly neglected. The Ribbi Cardigan just needs to have the sleeves and sides seamed and the collar and zipper attached. I need to motivate myself to finish so that I have something fun to wear in the fall.

I saw this pattern on another blog last week and fell in love with it. http://www.bluealvarez.com/bluealva/hotlava.html It calls for Manos de Uruaguay and the gauge is 3 stitches/inch. I was intending to use some Manos that I bought last year and knitted into a sweater that I do not like or wear. It's in a pink color. But I went to the yarn sale at Two Sisters and Ewe with some knitting friends and bought some Cascade Piazza (?) in a pretty burgandy color. I couldn't help it... it was 30% off. Problem, the stated gauge is 4 stitches/ inch. I am wondering if I can make it look good at 3 st/in. I'll probably have to use a size 10 or 11 needle and I'm hoping it doesn't look too loose.

3 FO's this week!

2005-05-30T17:04:00.000-04:00

I managed to get the Lacy Kerchief Scarf, the Baby Albert, and a checkerboard scarf off the needles this week. They all came out great. On Wedesday last week I went to Knitting in La Jolla to look for some cute buttons for the Baby Albert and found some cute Scottie dog ones. I bought 5 for the jacket and scored some really nice Rowan Cork in a very pale blue. It was on sale for 50% off and I couldn't leave the store without getting something for myself. I'm planning on making the Simply Marilyn sweater. You can get the pattern free from www.interweave.com. They made it in a really pretty pink but I think the color I got will look good too. The pattern yields a huge sweater so I am knitting Marilyn in a tighter gauge. The pattern calls for 3 st/in and I'm knitting it in 4 so that it will fit me.

Since I finished 3 FO's, I have room for 3 more. I cast on for 3 more projects. I am knitting a really simple ribbed hat in some leftover blue yarn. I was going to make it for my boyfriend but he ridiculed the color saying that it was a "beat me up blue". So it's now for me. I'll need it for those cold Michigan days. I also cast on for an Angelina Jacket from White Lies Designs. I bought the pattern and the yarn from Elann. Now I appreciate Joan's mission to bring stylish knit patterns to larger women but the smallest size in the pattern was for a 40" bust. It says 36" but the fabric I knit on my gauge swatch was really stretchy. So I modified the pattern a bit. For the back, instead of casting 180 to get a 20" back, I cast on 140 stitches to get a 16" back. Hopefully, I'll just have to modify the front and the back.

The last project is the Marilyn sweater. I have high hopes for this one. It is the nicest yarn and knits up quickly. I also tried the cable pattern in my gauge swatch and found out that cables aren't as scary as I thought. By blindly following the directions about slipping stitches onto a cable needle and knitting the appropriate number of stitches then knitting the stitches off the cable needle, I made the cable for the sweater! It is always exciting to learn a new skill.

I'm posting the pics to my FO's on photobucket right now. It is taking forever with my dialup connection. So I'll post the link to my photobucket account after I figure out what it is. I have two albums, Finished Objects and On the Needles. Of course all my finished projects will be in Finished Objects. If you have comments about my projects, please let me know! No one in my family is a knitter so they all think that my knitting is great. But I'd appreaciate honest feedback.

PS: Here are the pictures of the projects I finished this week. I added a link in the side bar too. Enjoy!

---Gail

School's done

2005-05-22T20:15:00.000-04:00

For the semester that is. I had finals last week and in this day of instant feedback, got my grades. In both religion classes that I took, I got A's. I'm glad but I don't even need these classes to enter MSU. I enrolled in them to get into Regis University. After I found out about MSU, I almost didn't want to go to class anymore but I already paid and it was too late to withdraw. The A's are just icing on the cake.

As for knitting, I'm still working on the same WIP's. I'm at the decreasing portion of the Lacy Kerchief Scarf so I'm about halfway done. I'm really enjoying this pattern and I like the Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece. I've never bought or worked with it before but it's nice. It's not as elastic as wool but it's much more wearable in San Diego.

I have a sweater that I made from Manos De Uruaguay that I'm thinking of recycling into a Clapotis. I don't wear the sweater mainly because of the bad job I did in seaming it. And I still have an extra skein of yarn. Maybe I'll start the Clappy with the extra skein and if I enjoy the pattern I'll continue with unravelling the sweater.

I had a few friends over for knitting last night. We had a great afternoon that stretched into the evening. My friends were stitching together an afghan that a grandmother had crocheted but never sewed into an afghan. I didn't help because that's what I hate the most about knitting/crocheting... putting the pieces together. I'm perfectly happy doing the knitting but hate seaming. That and putting fringe on. My mom wants me to fringe the Charlotte's web I made her but I actually like it without the fringe. I put the crochet edging on it and think that fringe would be a little much.

I'm going to miss the sunny weather so much when I go away to school. My boyfriend and I walked around Sea Port Village today and had icecream at Ben & Jerry's. We sat by the water and just enjoyed each other's company. Then we drove over to Old Town and took a tour of the Whaley House. Supposedly it's haunted but we didn't see any ghosts today.

Good news

2005-05-15T14:59:00.000-04:00

I have great news to report. I got accepted to Michigan State University's Accelerated BSN program and will start on August 29. So that means I have to move from sunny San Diego, CA where I've lived pretty much all my life and brace myself for East Lansings snowy winter weather. According to some friends, it actually gets below 0. Brrrr!!!! But I can't wait to get started on my new career.

On the knitting front, I started the lacy kerchief scarf from the Interweaves 2005 summer edition. I bought some Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in wisteria from my LYS. I really love this pattern. Here's a picture of it. It got cut off at the bottom and I am still trying to figure out what is wrong.

For some reason, I'm having trouble downloading oictures of my projects into www.photobucket.com. Is there a better service for sharing pictures of my knitting???

I have read other people's assessment of the Summer 2005 IK and I think that they are unfair. Many people think that their knitting designs for Summer are horrendous. I happen to like quite a few of them.

One Button Cardigan- I agree with many people, not everyone can pull this off. But it is an interesting design and will work well for women who are a little curvy.
Bed and Bath Duo- I like the pajamas. Not so sure about the bathrobe.
Two-Tie Striped Cardigan- I love this little sweater. Perfect for a cool summer night. And I love the colors. When I find some Reynolds Saucy Sport, I will make this one!
Lacy Kerchief Scarf- Obviously I love it.
Acorn Camisole- I likd this simple top. It looks simple but it's probably a challenge to make. But I'm getting better at lace knitting.
Fiery Bolero- I'm not usually a fan of shrugs, but I like this simple top in the bold color.
Premiere Pullover- I love this sweater. And the last time I was at my LYS, I took a look at Classic Elite Premiere and fell in love with this fiber. It's so soft.

Charlotte's Web is Finished

2005-05-08T15:23:00.000-04:00

I'm so happy that this is finally done. I made this shawl in one color, I believe it's the Strawberry Lemonade. I bought the yarn from Inspirations Yarn. (www.inspirationsyarn.com) about 6 months ago and finally made somthing with it. I'm really happy with the way it turned out and my mom loves it too. It drapes really well. Check out the second picture. The only think is I think I made it too small by miscalculating gauge. I think I got gauge with a size 4 needle but it came out about 20 inches narrower!!! So that's a huge lesson for me. Pay attention to gauge. It's a good thing it's a shawl and fit doesn't matter so much. Here are a few pictures of the shawl. I didn't put the fringe on yet but I kind of like it without fringe.

I've started a baby Einstein jacket from the Knit Stitch book. It looks to be a pretty simple pattern. You basically knit a scarf then pick up stitches to cread the sleeves and back. It will probably be a really quick knit.

Too many projects

2005-05-06T15:46:00.000-04:00

I went to my LYS yesterday and picked up some Brown Sheep Cotton Fleece in Wisteria to make the lace scarf in the Summer 2005 issue of Interweave Knitting. I also picked up some Plymouth Encore DK in Oatmeal to make a baby Einstein for a friends baby.

I happen to love my LYS. Actually, it's not so local. Maybe 40-45 minutes away from my home. It's called Common Threads and the owners are soooo sweet and helpful. If you are in San Diego, I definitely recommend a trip up there. They have many yarns and their prices are extremely reasonable. Other yarn stores in San Diego are way more expensive.

As I was putting my new yarn away, I realized that I have many projects in the planned and 3 currently on my needles. As soon as I figure out how to put a side bar in, I'll list everything up.

First post!!!

2005-05-01T21:42:00.000-04:00

I'm very excited to be posting for the first time. I hope to use this blog to record my knitting experiences as well as other things in my life.

I am a pre-nursing student who took up knitting a year ago. I used to be an industrial engineer but hated it. I am currently waiting to hear from two more nursing schools before making up my mind on where to go. Right now, I'm in San Diego but I applied to accelerated BSN programs out of the area. San Diego currently doesn't have a school with the accelerated program. With this type of program, I can get my BSN in one year as opposed to three. My top two choices are Regis University and Michigan State University. I expect to hear from the last of the schools by next week. Hopefully, I have good news to report.

On the knitting front, I am finishing up a Charlotte's Web Shawl for my mom. It's her Mother's Day present and I just have to finish the last row and block and fringe it. So I hope to be finished by next week. I made it in some laceweight wool that I got from Inspirations yarn. It's the strawberry lemondade color. Bright I know, but its my mother's favorite color. I'll post a picture after it's finished. I have some Koigu that I will be using to make my own shawl later.

I am also knitting the Ribbi Cardigan from Chic Knits. It can be found here. http://www.chicknits.com/catalog/ribbycardi.html I really like the pattern and I finished the back, and front but when I got to the sleeves and kind of just lost motivation to finish it. I just have the sleeves left and I know I just need to plug away so that I have something neat to wear in the fall. I made it in some dark blue Highland wool that I got from Elann.

While looking at the Chic Knits site, I noticed that Bonnie has a new pattern that I want to make. http://www.chicknits.com/catalog/scoop.html It's called the Scoop du Jour and it uses Lionbrand CottonEase which I have tons of.

I was so sad to hear that Lionbrand is discontinuing CottonEase. I really liked that yarn. It knitted up beautifully and was priced right for a starving student. Now I'll have to stalk Knitpicks and Elann to score some nice cotton yarns.