art night

I was invited to an art night at The Other Barn last night. You bring whatever art you do, and you sit and work on it for a couple of hours and chat with everyone. How fun is that?

I brought my crochet to work on. Others were doing cross stitch, fabric painting, collage, japanese braiding, disco trophy making, and soapstone molds.

Being the new girl, and not quite yet having the hang of stitching while carrying on a conversation, I was amused to listen to the various discussions. Topics included Ireland, colleges, drugs (cocaine, heroin, and laudenum, specifically, all of which used to be legal, and one of which Bayer used to manufacture before they moved on to aspirin), spray paint and how not to use it indoors, food, archeological digs, collecting, grave robbing, and phobias (clowns and people in bird costumes, specifically).

I got quite a few rounds added on to my earthy colored blanket, and it was a great way to spend a Thursday evening.

an embarrassment of stitches

WiP pics, as promised, and a few completed projects as well:

blanket in earthy colors - round and round we go!



baby blanket in the usual pastel colors (though you may not be able to tell from the picture)

I find that textured or fuzzy yarn is harder to crochet with because it's harder to see the individual stitches. Bloody obvious, I'm sure, but I've only recently figured it out. It's not so bad to knit with, but the least stressful way to use it with a hook is to do squares.


a shawl complete with fringe in pretty watercolory blues and greens - I get a lot of compliments at work when I wear this, especially with a black turtleneck top.


beginnings of another blanket - this is boucle yarn in a raspberry color, which is much prettier than the picture shows; self-striping too; it's super soft and comes in huge skeins (I have 3 in my stash, plus 3 more in a turquoise/brown mix)


Lyra modeling the surf and turf blanket mentioned in an earlier post


Tristan modeling the latest in stripes - 11 colors from the Vanna's Choice line, with edging thankyouverymuch. My mom says my grandmothers would be proud of how even my stitches are. They might frown at my edging though - since you change colors every two rows there were a lot of ends to weave into the edging on one side, so that side looks a bit lumpy. I like the colors though, and the kitties love to lay on it.

I've been reading a lot of craft blogs lately. People are doing amazing things with yarn, and they're smart enough to blog about it. The ones I read most often:

The Crochet Dude - pretty much just what the title says; he's a designer out of Houston

Craft.Rock.Love - a designer out of Austin with really cool red hair

Modeknit/Knitting Heretic - Annie Modesitt, famous in the industry

Crazy Aunt Purl - if Bridget Jones were American and if Mark Darcy married her and then left her because he was having a mid-life crisis and she discovered knitting as a form of therapy, this is what she would have written. Start from the beginning. Seriously. Read it all.

And that's your yarn news for today.

antidote to belligerence

I guess I was asking for help from the Universe in my last blog, and as always, it provides.

Thursday, I went for a sushi lunch with co-workers. Nothing like raw fish and miso soup to perk up the brain. I've been less into the spicy tuna and more into the sashimi lately. Is it just me or is chirashi the same thing except the rice is under the fish rather than on the side?

Also on Thursday, I got home to find a big box of yarn on my doorstep and the latest issue of Crochet Today magazine in my mail box. Seeing the box made me instantly happy because there are at least two potential crochet projects in there. Instead of doing my grad school homework, I sorted the yarn for the two projects I have in mind.

I've got four other crochet projects and one knitting project going on right now. I used to feel guilty about having several projects going on at the same time, but now I find it's useful. One of the projects uses heavy, thick yarn, and after working on that for awhile, my hands get a little sore. Since I have other projects going that use lighter yarn, I can switch to one of those for a bit to give my hands a break.

I also decided to try out a pair of my grandmother's knitting needles, since I hadn't done any knitting in awhile. I usually use bamboo needles, but hers are the metal kind and a little more slippery. Still, I wanted to make a scarf for my uncle with them, since he gave them to me for my birthday. I thought it would be a nice family continuity thing - knit a scarf for him using the needles his mom used.

They're my only connection with her anyway. I was at her funeral a few years ago, but prior to that, I hadn't seen her for 20-some years (through no fault of my own, mind you - family drama of the older generations pretty much prevented it and left both her and me powerless). I can only imagine what it would have been like to have a stitch-n-bitch session with her and my mom. How fun that would have been. I can at least use her needles and hope that my stitches are not an embarrassment to the family name.

I'll post pictures of all of my WiPs (well, except for the ones I'm doing for Angel-the-soon-to-be-art-teacher and Emily since they read this blog) once I locate my camera in my very messy condo.

Yep, sushi and yarn therapy cure all ills.

deliver me from belligerence

Stuff going on at work has really put me in a mood. And not the good kind. It being my time of the month doesn't help either.

Since my boss got kicked to the curb, awkwardness is running into me and my co-worker at every corner. It's draining us both, and causing us to be irritable. I'm worried we'll start being irritable with each other. That would definitely mean TPTB have won.

Since I've got so little energy, I feel the need to guard it. I also feel like saying "No" and being grumpy a lot. I sit in meetings with arms crossed, saying little, and coming very near to pouting, and I don't feel like doing work or doing my best. What's doing my best gotten me except paralysis in the midst of office politics? My co-worker feels the same, and we don't know what to do about it except complain to each other about it (talk about enabling!), go to acupuncture, go for walks, and sigh whenever we see each other. None of which (except maybe the walks and the acupuncture) is doing either of us any good. But we're stuck. I hate being stuck.

Unfortunately, my mood has escaped the office and followed me home. I don't feel like doing homework or writing, which has put me behind in my grad school work. I'm supposed to go to a medical writing conference on Saturday for some workshops, and I don't feel like doing that either.

My nutritionist is doing some reiki on me tomorrow morning. Maybe that will make me uncross my arms.

lippogram

I've never come across this type of writing assignment before. It was quite a thinker.

Here's the writing prompt: "A lippogram is a writing technique in which a letter is deliberately left out (first pioneered by a group of experimental French writers known as Oulipo). This doesn’t mean just removing the letters, but finding a way to say something that doesn’t use any words that contain that letter. For example, a sentence like “He went to the bank to deposit a check,” could be written without using any “e’s” like this: “A man took a trip to a bank to drop off his bi-monthly pay into his savings account.” The most famous example of this is Georges Perec’s novel La Disparation, which is a 500-page novel without any “e’s” whatsoever (amazingly, it was successfully translated into English; it’s English title is A Void). A more recent example is Mark Dunn’s novel Ella Minnow Pea, which is a progressive lippogram; each chapter drops another letter, until the only letters that remain are L, M, N, O, and P.

For this assignment, take a paragraph you’ve already written (at least 250 words long) and rewrite it, without using the letter “e” anywhere. The point of this exercise is to get you thinking about language in ways you’re not used to, to make you look at words you normally take for granted. Often, without even noticing it we fall into habits in our writing—using the same constructions, vocabulary, etc. To not use the letter “e” is to have to think about syntax and word choice in a totally different way. It naturally changes your tone and style (for example, you can’t have “men,” women,” or even “people”—so what happens if you use “guys” and “gals,” or “folks” instead?). If you find yourself getting stuck in a rut, a detour like a lippogram can be a great way to have to reconsider your language."

Here's what I came up with:

Original text:

Sniffling, tired and depressed, I went for a walk around the lake. No one needed me in the office, so I didn't feel guilty for slipping out for half an hour. It wasn't as warm in the late afternoon, but I had dressed in layers, and I was armed with a pocketful of tissues.

The water raged over the waterfall from the recent rain. Some of the townhouses for sale off the lake path look like dollhouses. I wish I could afford one - living in a townhouse on a lake sounds divine.

Lots of dogs out - two pit bulls straining at the end of their leashes, wanting desperately to say hi to each other, and little yappy dogs. The ducks and geese and swans congregated on the water, with a heron observing them from a distance.

Despite my cold, I could still smell winter - fireplaces, warmth held in the body, ice in the wind, scarves and mittens, the sleep of some things, the death of others. I never bought into the whole spring starts on this date and fall starts on that date. Mother Earth doesn't work that way - leaves start changing color and falling off trees in August.

Everyone I passed nodded, smiled, or said hi, including the old man who is always bundled up in coat, gloves, and hat with ear flaps and shuffles along the path picking up trash and stray branches.

The sunlight was full in my face. In the blazing glare, I could just make out a young man on crutches coming toward me. As I got closer, I saw that in fact, he had two white metal canes that he steadied on the path and then swung his body forward. It was a slow process, requiring all his focus, and it looked tiring, but he wasn't out of breath. He didn't have any use of his legs, which he kept close together and which were slightly twisted at an odd angle. He was by himself. How he had gotten to the lake? Did he intend to go around the entire lake, which is two miles? He looked at me and smiled.

__________________________________________________

Lippogram text:

Sniffling, worn out and unhappy, I took to walking daily. I wasn’t vital to daily goings-on at work, so I thought nothing of slipping out for half an hour. It wasn't as warm during mid-day, but I had a thick coat, and a handful of napkins.

I wish I could afford a flat off this pond’s path. Living in a flat on a pond sounds fabulous.

Lots of dogs out - two pit bulls wanting to say hi, and small yappy mutts. Ducks and swans pick at grass, with frogs watching from afar.

My cold notwithstanding, I could still catch a wintry aroma - warmth in body, frost in wind, dry air all around. I don’t buy into spring starts on this day and fall starts on that day. Our natural world works in its own way – colors start changing in August.

All I pass nod, grin, or say hi, including an old thin man swimming in a coat and hat, shuffling along, picking up trash and an occasional stray branch.

Sunlight was guiding my stroll. In a blazing glow, I could just distinguish a young man with walking sticks coming my way. As I approach, I spot that in fact, this guy had two wood walking sticks balancing in front of him, and a quick motion to swing his body forward. It was slow going, involving all his focus, and tiring all who saw him, but this guy wasn't worn out. From waist down, his limbs show an obvious twisting in an odd position. All on his own, sticks swing forward, body swings forward, around a big pond on a cold day. Nodding and grinning, passing and focusing.

yes she is, no she isn't

It was amusing to browse the list of election coverage headlines yesterday. The AP headline said "Clinton will concede." The Reuters headline just below it said "Clinton will not concede." At least you can't say it's just another election.

I usually follow election coverage peripherally until about mid-summer of election year, since by then, we pretty much know who will be on the ballot. When it appeared these two were in for the long haul, I started paying attention earlier. Don't hate me, Angel, but Hillary really started getting on my nerves with her evasive answers and the whole "I mis-spoke about being under dangerous crossfire" when the video clearly showed she wasn't. I might have given her the benefit of the doubt that she may have been thinking of another incident in which she really was under fire, but she took so bloody long to say she mis-spoke, even when faced with the evidence.

It took me awhile to warm up to Obama, but I think in the end, he ran a better campaign, was a better speaker, and took a lot less for granted in the smaller states. His grassroots campaign contribution program is impressive as well. That's one shrewd dude.

Dunno what I think about Hillary as the VP candidate. I'm not sure that's the best way to "re-unite the party." And they snapped at each other so much that it would hardly seem like they could get over that quickly and form a genuine partnership. So it'll still be interesting for awhile.

written out on Friday

I did a major re-vamp on my two chapters and turned those in by the Friday deadline.

There's a major proposal in the works at work, and I had to turn in a summary of what I do, also on Friday.

I found out on Thursday that my boss was being laid off, and her last day was Friday. What this means for my job, I don' t know. She doesn't like it. I don't like it (when my acupuncturist read my pulses that evening, she said the earth had been taken out from under me - no kidding!). And everyone else was shocked. So I re-wrote and updated my resume, just in case. Tomorrow, I'm supposed to find out "what it all means."

Next class starts tomorrow. We get to do an additional two chapters toward the thesis. What worries me is that writing just two chapters is labor-intensive, at least for me, so I'm not sure how I'm going to write an entire draft of a thesis in two months. Maybe I'm a slow writer.

I start my herbs this week too. Just in time.