A couple of weeks ago -- no, make that a week ago -- I saw this insanely adorable stuffed doll over at Whispering Pine and decided I absolutely had to make one, so I bought the pattern and apparently couldn't stop at just one.
These are for Len's niece and nephew, Max and Maddie. I did not do the crazy cute shoes or collars because. Well, because I am out of time. There it is. I changed their faces because I wasn't able to pull off "cute half smile" and they looked like they were smirking. At one and a half, I don't think their sense of irony are very well developed.
I think they are kind of cute anyway.
A bunny will be making an appearance soon. I can't recommend Wee Wonderful's store enough for the cuteness factor -- she has a stuffed robot pattern*, for heaven's sake! -- and her freebie section is pretty freakin' adorable too. I know what everyone is getting for their birthdays this year.
*Which I am buying right now, as I type.
An unrelated cat story: Len took Gwen to the vet this morning. She has lost a couple pounds (which she didn't really have available to lose) and her fur has been kind of greasy. We still don't know what is wrong -- thyroid, worms, something else -- but it turns out that she is blind. I really find that much more amusing than I should (considering she is sick), but I think she has had vision problems for the last 4 years or more, so she's had plenty of time to get used to it. We have integrated Judy back into the population (which is going better than I expected), but have left her room with a baby gate over the door so the dog can't get in. Gwen will not jump the gate to get into the room, she yells at me until I open it for her. Which wouldn't be all that surprising, considering the blindness factor, EXCEPT she will jump the gate to get out. That cat is a mental case.
Anyway, I will be in the land of dial-up for the next week and a half and will probably not post during that time. So have joyful holiday-of-your-choosing and a peaceful New Year!
11. Coma Girl -- Joe Strummer and the Mescaleros (Streetcore) I like this album better than Global A Go-Go, it is a little more punk (not much, though) and less World Music. This song is particularly sweet, very catchy with a bit of an edge.
12. Shave Yo' Legs -- Keb' Mo' (Keep It Simple) His voice is as smooth as silk. The title is a little unfortunate, the sentiment of the song is along the lines of "you don't have to make yourself beautiful, you are beautiful just the way you are, shaved legs, or not". Something everyone wants to hear occasionally.
13. Downtown Train -- Tom Waits (Raindogs) Rod Stewart covered this in 1989. I remember it fondly, but it is a great song and, whatever I might think of his terrible music choices, he has an amazing set of pipes. Tom Waits, however, is something else altogether. Once I got used to his voice, a mixture of cigarettes and cheap whiskey, I can't help but find it beautiful (the way a Diane Arbus photo is disturbing but beautiful).
14. Evangeline -- Matthew Sweet (Girlfriend) Before Georgie James was power pop, Matthew Sweet was. This album was stuck in my player for weeks in the early '90s (and I even got it autographed, back when there was a place for musicians to do that). This is a great song for driving around singing at the top of your lungs. I can't link to a video as I am writing this from home, in my pajamas, and we are still in the land of dial-up. I can't help but suspect You Tube would completely gum up my computer.
I know, crazy. I finally managed to take some pictures this weekend, despite the lack of sun and can show off a few things I've been working on:
February Lady sweater. I used Manosdel Uruguay, rescued from a long unfinished sweater. In keeping with the rescue theme:
I rescued these wolf buttons from a jacket I bought many years ago, but never liked. They work nicely with this, I think.
The Christmas tradition in my step-mother's family is called "Door Prizes": instead of a big, chaotic gift exchange, everyone brings stuff -- stuff they've been shopping for all year, stuff they think will appeal to one person or another, or to everyone, found stuff, made stuff -- it all goes on a table (or three), we draw numbers and pick (no one gets to steal stuff from anyone else). It is big and chaotic.
I made these for Door Prizes. I'm pretty sure I saw a tutorial somewhere, then realized this would be a great use for fat quarters. Here's how you do it: take two fat quarters of coordinating colors (or not), slap 'em right sides together, trim to the same size, sew together, leaving an opening to turn, turn them right side out, press, top stitch about 1/4 inch from edge. Easy and pretty.
I made these, too. Here is the other (not terribly coordinated side):
Also, despite swearing up one side of my sewing machine and down the other that I would not do this, I seem to have started a quilt. My only excuse is scraps and lots of them:
This comes via a Melly and Me tutorial. I intend to make this large enough to fit our queen size bed, obviously, I have a ways to go. I can totally see the appeal of quilting, but if I ever buy fabric specifically for that purpose, you may feel free to slap me.
6. Kiko and the Lavender Moon -- Los Lobos (Kiko) Los Lobos is an unclassifiable band -- rock, folk, Tex-Mex -- Wikipedia describes Kiko as "creative and wildly experimental". I myself think the album is a classic, the songs work individually and as a complete whole. This song is hot, slinky and very sexy. Click through to the video and you will see what was meant by creative and wildly experimental:
7. You Really Got a Hold on Me -- She & Him (Volume One) This is a lovely cover of the Smokey Robinson classic.
8. More Adventurous -- Rilo Kiley (More Adventurous) This is one of those songs that I don't know what to say about. It is big, full of fear and hope: "I've been trying to nod my head, but it's like I've got a broken neck Wanting to say I will as my last testament For me to be saved and you to be brave We don't have to walk down that aisle 'Cause if marriage ain't enough Well at least we'll be loved"
9. Cake Parade -- Georgie James (Places)
10. Hooky Junk -- The Gourds (Heavy Ornamentals) Another NPR find, and it was the story behind this song that did it for me: the writer's very young kid kept wanting to hear some of that "Hooky junk", which he finally figured out was Tom Waits (that kid has some very mature taste in music). No video, but you can hear the song here.
A couple of months ago, I made a 2 volume set of CD mixes for my sister, Sarah ("CD mix" just does not have the same ring as "Mixtape"), and because I was fairly busy at work (where I do anything having to do with the computer) I did not manage to come up with an annotated song list. Also, I will admit that I was rather lazy about getting them to the post office, so she didn't actually get the mixes until Thanksgiving, with a song list, but no annotation. That just won't do. So, I have decided to present the list here, over the course of several days. It is 40 songs, after all.
Late Train, vol. 1
1. "Shake Ya Boogie" -- Mocean Worker (Cinco de Mowo!) On the one hand, I don't tend to find music NPR presents all that interesting; on the other hand, three of the albums represented on this set came to me via NPR. Go figure. This one is even odder in that it is "Electronica", a genre which has never appealed to me. Mocean Worker takes classic jazz lines (played by the likes of Herbie Hancock), cuts them apart and remixes them into a Latin beat. The result is an interesting, infectious collage. I don't necessarily want to listen to the whole album in one sitting, but the individual cuts work well in a mix.
2. "Look Me Up" -- Georgie James (Places) NPR find number 2. They are pretty rockin' power pop, but also like Mocean Worker, the songs work better in mixes than all together. As Heidi Klum might say, the album very matchy-matchy. Very fun, but a bit much all at once.
3. "Sentimental Heart" -- She & Him (Volume One) I love this song. I love this album. And I have a massive girl crush on Zooey Deschanel. There is a vintage early-60's feel to this. Her singing chops may not blow you out of the water, but her voice is sweet and heartfelt, as are her songs.
4. "Johnny Appleseed" -- Joe Strummer & the Mescaleros (Global A Go Go) A couple of years ago, HBO chose to cancel "Deadwood", some of the best television ever to air (once you got past the cussing, which was...plentiful and operatic) in favor of a show called "John from Cinncinati". One of the only good things about that show was it's theme song, "Johnny Appleseed". He has a voice that just makes me melt.
5. "Hesitating Beauty" -- Billy Bragg & Wilco (Mermaid Avenue) If you have any love for folk music, the two "Mermaid Avenue" albums need to be in your collection. This is such a sweet, romantic song and is one of my favorites from the project: "We can ramble hand in hand/across the grasses of our land/I'll kiss you for each leaf on every tree".
Sharon tagged me for a photo meme, and thank goodness, 'cos I've got nothing in the way of a full blog post otherwise. So, I shall post the meme and whatever bits and pieces I find floating around my brain.
The rules are to post the sixth photo from your sixth folder of pictures. I will have to post from the 7th, since there is only one photo in the 6th folder:
Luckily, I remember this: it is the Swallowtail shawl, knitted with copper penny dyed yarn. The blog post tells me these were the first pictures I took with my then camera (Canon Powershot A530 or something). I never wear the shawl because it is the size of a kerchief.
I'm supposed to tag 5 people. I'm not going to, instead, if you need a blog post excuse (Stef? Crabby Scientist*?), use this one. It's fun! Instead, here is the sixth photo from the sixth folder from the bottom of the list:
Lizzy, running too fast to be in focus.
Speaking of Lizzy, she had her female parts removed this weekend. It has been kind nice having a calmer dog, we don't expect it to last. We love Lizzy, but we are not really dog people.
I have finished a number of projects -- knitting and sewing -- which I have completely failed to take pictures of, mainly because I am rarely home when it is light. Of course, one could reasonably point out that I just had a four day weekend, 3 days of which were sunny. In which case, chalk it up to laziness. For the record: 3 skirts, a set of four napkins, two sweaters and some wee mittens. Maybe that is why I don't take pictures of anything, I'm too busy. As if.
This past weekend was the 40th anniversary of The White Album. While it is not technically their best album (Revolver? Sgt. Pepper? Abbey Road? Take your pick), it is my favorite of the Beatles, and one of my all time favorites. They were coming apart at the seams, and it showed -- how else do you explain "Ob-la-di, Ob-la-da", "Dear Prudence", "Helter Skelter" and "Revolution 9" showing up on the same album? George Harrison brought in Eric Clapton (God!) for "While My Guitar Gently Weeps" (and how gorgeous is that song?!) All of the tension and bitterness produced a masterpiece of a mess.
Today is the 75th anniversary of my grandparents wedding.
*Crabby Scientist is my brother. He is a space scientist, which I think means he is smart. Crabbiness runs in the family. He and his lovely wife hosted Thanksgiving for something like 26 people (siblings, cousins, spouses and children). As far as I know, everyone survived intact, which is impressive. Had it been our house, someone would have been carted off to the loony bin and someone else would have had knitting needles sticking out of his ears. The food was very good and it was lovely to see everyone in a non-funeral setting..
Oh! One other completely random thing. This morning I was struck with a sudden, overwhelming desire for a pair of Fluevog shoes. These or these. I am ill. But they are more practical than the yellow ones, right?
We are having Thanksgiving at my brother's this year. I made rolls on Sunday so I wouldn't have to on Wednesday night or have to get up very early on Thursday. While the first batch were rising, I divided the second batch into 12 pieces and left them on the counter to rest. When I came back to the kitchen, I discovered only 4 pieces of dough. And in the living room was a dog, with a belly ache. She had consumed 24 ounces of raw bread dough.
I made more and teased her for the rest of the night. I had plenty time, ingredients and the Kitchen-Aid does most of the work, so I wasn't particularly upset. And Lizzy's upset stomach was surely punishment enough.
Please excuse me while I geek out for a moment, because if you can't be a big geek on your own blog, where can you?
It seems that David Tennant is leaving Dr. Who. {sniffle} No, really, go see him in his kilt finery. Isn't he lovely? Today I read a rumor (which was really just a comment on a post on a pop culture site, so probably not true at all) that Chiwetel Ejiofor, who played the kick ass Operative in Serenity might take his place. Be still my heart.
Um. Yeah. Sorry about that. How about a picture of a cute kitty to make up for it:
It's been sad song days out there on the musical interwebs. These lists reminded me of one I've been thinking about posting for a couple of months.
A few years ago my mother mentioned that she hates the song "Cathy's Clown" by the Everly Brothers. It seems, when they were teenagers, my mom and dad broke up for some amount of time and he went on a date with a girl named Cathy (for the record, my dad does not remember this. Then again, he was a teenage-boy). She has hated that song ever since, even though they got back together, got married, had kids, and divorced. I found that kind of sweet, that so many years later, a fairly innocuous song could still feel that way. I have several songs I just can't listen to, which may make me extra sensitive.
1. I'm Sorry -- John Denver. This came out the year my parents got divorced. I'll leave it at that.
2. "Something So Right" -- Paul Simon. This is on "There Goes Rhymin' Simon" and reminds me way too much of the first boy I was in love with. He was not in love with me. You know how it goes. "They've got a wall in China/A thousand miles long/To keep out the foreigners they built it strong/I've got a wall around me you can't even see/It took a little time to get next to me."
3. "And So it Goes" -- Billy Joel. The way I remember it, my then best friend played this for me around the time he started dating his now wife and the cracks in our friendship were just beginning. But now that I think about it, I'm pretty sure it was a lot earlier (the song came out in 1990), but I associate it very strongly with him and since it is about the end of a relationship, the end of our's. Not to mention, he cried when he played it, which reminds me of why I loved him. Damn that Billy Joel anyway.
4. "Wildflowers" -- Tom Petty. Same friend as above played this one for me and said it reminded him of me. That was enough to get it on this list, but then it came on while I was riding with my friend Lynn, a month or so after our friend Sue died. Lynn said she always thinks of Sue whenever she hears it. That is a double whammy.
5. "Good Luck Fire Chief" -- Brian Lillie. So no link for this one, he is an Ann Arbor singer/songwriter. When I worked in Constantine, I became very close to the fire chief, Tom. He was in his mid-50's, very funny, and so alive. I loved him dearly. He had had a heart attack 20 years before, and those troubles started again. He died a couple of days after I started a new job in Ann Arbor and I was not able to go to his funeral (something I deeply regret). Around the time Tom's heart problems began, I saw Lillie perform this song and thought it was funny because Tommy was having no luck at all. It is a goofy little tune about a zany small town (and rings fairly true, in spirit anyway), but to me it is about Tommy. This is the only one of these songs that shows up on regular basis, since I have the album of the same name on my ipod; sometimes I can hear it and remember how funny he was, most of the time I just miss him. "So good luck Fire Chief, where ever you're going/I hope you have buildings to burn."
Well, that was cheerful. How about you? Does anyone else out there have certain song that makes your heart seize up in pain?
To make it up to you, here a couple of pictures of our delightful not-so-little puppy:
It was still a little damp, and I was weaving in ends on the way, but I managed to get the shawl done in time for Friday's Euchre Tournament.
Here it is, folded in half (no, it did not dry that way!). Pretty and snuggly. Wet blocking really makes a difference with this yarn, a half hour soak with Eucalan made the yarn so soft and really gave the shawl a lovely drape.
I was hoping you'd get an idea from this picture, but not really. By the way, weaving in ends, in the dark in a car is not as much fun as you might imagine. Don't worry, I wasn't driving.
I ran out of time so the scarf wasn't has long as I had hoped, it could have done with another couple of repeats, and I steam blocked rather than wet blocked.
The hat came out rather nicely. All of these were knitted on size 8 needles, which produces a rather firm fabric.
But the best thing was that they have raised $10,000 for ALS of Michigan in the five years they have organized the tournament, which is a great tribute to Sue.
Len's nephew, Connor, spent Saturday night with Len and Lizzy in a tent in our back yard. They did fine, but Lizzy threw up sometime in the night. I stayed in the house, because why would you sleep on the ground if you have a bed?
The wee dog in the background is Len's sister Amy's dog. Muffin.
We have a boy toy for the chickens now. He attacked Connor, but the hens seem to like him.
Lizzy in the wilds of our back yard.
Doesn't she look concerned? She probably just wants something. She's sweet that way.
My mom sent me this Four Things e-mail thing, which I have also seen as a blog meme, and I figured I'd just post it here rather than saying anything, you know, substantial. If you are looking for an easy blog post, consider yourself tagged.
Four jobs I have had in my life: 1. Fast food slinger 2. Copy shop gal (great preparation for #4 and my current job, I have no fear of printer jams) 3. Movie theater ticket girl (The theater had two screens. My favorite night was the night we premiered Howard's End, Dracula had only been in the theater for a week so the Goths and the yuppies were out in droves. It was quite the culture clash.) 4. Small town secretary/receptionist/billing clerk.
Four movies I would watch over and over: 1. Princess Bride. Like that's not obvious! 2. Anything with Cary Grant. Especially as directed by Hitchcock. 3. Casablanca. Sigh... 4. Lone Star and Passion Fish. Two movies by John Sayles. See how I break the rules?
Four places I have lived: 1. Plymouth, Michigan 2. Ann Arbor 3. Seattle 4. White Pigeon. Which is as small as you think it is.
Four TV shows that I watch 1. Heroes (which is finally getting good again) 2. Bones (which is finally back after being preempted by the stupid World Series) 3. Dr. Who (David Tennant....yum..) 4. The Daily Show
Four Places I have been: 1. France 2. Portland, Oregon 3. Missoula, Montana 4. San Diego
Four places I would rather be right now: 1. At home 2. Is is terrible that home is the only place I can think of that I'd rather be? Anywhere else would be too much work..
I read a New York Times Sunday Magazine article some years ago about your goal to build Democratic infrastructure in traditionally Republican states. While Barack Obama deserves a great deal of credit for running such a flawless campaign, this victory was YOUR vision and couldn't have been achieved without your very hard work. I want you to know that I am so very grateful and it has been a long time since I have had such pride in my country.
I know I know, you are sick of all the election ads, snark, and bellyaching. I am too: there was one Obama ad that we saw so many times I thought I was going to put someone's eye out if I had to see it again. Besides, god knows you don't need the likes of me telling you why I support Obama or why I am so very disappointed in McCain.
However, I think something very important gets lost during a presidential campaign, and that is whether you live in a solidly blue or red state, or somewhere in between, there are local elections and issues which are every bit as important as the national campaigns. These can often have a larger effect on our day to day lives than the presidential election. So even if you choose not to vote for president, please consider voting for the local school/library/whatever millage, state representatives, etc. If you are not sure what is on your ballot, go to your state's Secretary of State website and look for voter information. It should not be difficult to find.
However, can someone tell me what a drain commissioner does and why this is an elected position?
On another subject: Clapotis as a social disease. Hahahaha!!! The LaRousse defines Clapotis thusly: clapotis = clapotement which meaning lapping. Clears things up nicely I think. By which I mean not at all. I'll stick with the disease.
Also, I did not provide a link to the first version of the green dress. It is here.
My aunt Ann's funeral was yesterday. It left me with a lot of thoughts about funerals, which may coalesce into a blog post someday. Or not. I do remember, at her husband's funeral, my stepmother's grandmother commenting that she was sad that her husband was gone, but it was so nice to see everyone. I suppose that is the way it goes.
I was thinking about what to wear yesterday and decided I needed a new dress. I had acquired some black corduroy in a fabric buying frenzy with the intention of making a Retro Jumper. Looking at the directions, it seemed feasible to make in a couple of days, so...I did! Here is it with my patented Terrible Mirror Picture:
To be honest, I think it is more flattering in person than in the picture.
I finished another dress a few days ago:
This is the same pattern that I used for this dress, but the long sleeve version. I made the bodice an inch longer and several sizes smaller, but left the skirt the same size (I gathered it a bit more). I've already popped armhole seams so I need to shore those up, but otherwise I'm completely in love with this dress.
Knitting: A few months ago, Stef offered me some Manos del Uruguay, which wasn't working out for her. When she offered, she used words along the lines of "I know you usually knit for that annual Euchre Tournament. I have all this yarn you might like to have." So when it came time to think about knitting this year, it seemed very reasonable to use the yarn (whether she meant it that way or not).
So I have in the works, a scarf:
The stitch pattern is Pinnacle Chevron. It took much too long to get comfortable knitting this stitch, but I love how it is coming out. I will probably make a hat to go with this.
My aunt Ann died last night. It was a long, difficult death. She was Catholic and I dearly hope she finds the comfort in her heaven she was unable, in the end, to find here on earth.
Title from Paul Simon's "Proof" on Rhythm of the Saints
Gallons of vinegar used: numerous. I also froze a few pounds of beans, but I found a large number of last year's beans so I wound up giving a lot away (or letting them go bad in a very hot car because I forgot to bring them into work). We have plenty of tomato sauce and whole(ish) tomatoes left from last year, so I didn't have to mess with those (thank goodness!)
I read every night before turning out the light, even if it is just a couple of pages or flipping through a magazine, which means I usually finish books. Not always, but most of the time.
When last I posted about books, I was just starting Angle of Repose by Wallace Stegner. It is a beautiful, sweeping novel about the nature and the cost of marriage, about the making of the American West. As I was beginning the book, I read several of the comments on Amazon, one of which struck me in particular: the commenter did not like the book, because she (or he) found the main character, Susan, unsympathetic and narcissistic. At one level, it is true, Susan is rather a snob (a trait upon which the narrator comments a few times) and sometimes very unlikeable. But that reading of Susan, of the novel, seems shallow. The characters are so completely human, and thus deeply flawed, it can be like looking in a mirror. I could go on and on.
Reading Stegner's very Western novel put me in mind of Willa Cather. I read her a lot when I was a teenager, and adored the books. Reading My Antonia again reminds me of why. Cather is something of an impressionistic writer, by which I mean although her stories take place over the course of time, they don't really have an overarching storyline. My Antonia is the narrator's memory of his childhood friend, Antonia, whose family are immigrants to Nebraska from Bohemia. Through Jim's memories, a picture of a particular place and time emerges. It is a lovely gem of a book. I also really love Death Comes for the Archbishop, by the way.
Now I am reading, in honor of his untimely death, David Foster Wallace's collection of essays, Consider the Lobster. I haven't read anything by DFW before, but Len has -- I had gotten him the book for Christmas, or his birthday, and many of the essays had been published in Harpers or the Atlantic to which Len was a longtime subscriber. Liberal elistest that he is. Wallace's writing is extremely intelligent, often funny, and very very dense (many footnotes, and footnotes of footnotes). He can seem offputting, but his writing is very rewarding.
I'm also re-reading Sarah Vowell's Partly Cloudy Patriot, because it seems appropriate for election season.
I was planning to write an eloquent, yet furious rant about the state of the economy and the election and all of that, but I read that Fox is planning to remake Absolutely Fabulous.
Now that canning season is essentially over (I am still hoping to eek out another batch of salsa), I finally have time to sew. Sort of. I have made a skirt, which is sitting at the bottom of my laundry basket, un-photographed, and hemmed a pair of sweat pants for a friend ('cos I'm nice that way). And I made a bed for Lizzy.
Cute! This was very easy, a big round pillow and a zippered casing. For some reason I have a hard time with zippers, my first few went ok, but now they just go badly. It doesn't matter so much for this project, but my machine came with free lessons and I think I will avail myself for zipper help. Stuffing the pillow was pretty hilarious (it took about 3.5 pounds of stuffing), the animals were all very interested. Whip stitching the opening took longer than Lizzy had patience for and she went to sleep (in her crate).
Simon, however, approved. Of the bed, not the dog. I'll be interested to see who claims it, I'm laying bets on Simon.
The cats started waking me up at 4:30 this morning. Simon started it by biting my fingers. Why Simon? Why? Very Bad Cats.
On Saturday we had some friends over for some very bad sushi. Not bad in a raw fish way, that was fine, bad in a rice way. It turns out, making rice for sushi is a skill, possibly an art, and it doesn't necessarily come out right the first time. Or the third. Blech.
The cake was good, though.
Len thought it looked like Tim Burton had a hand in the decorating.
Chris and Aubrey brought flowers, which my camera had a hard time pulling itself away from on Sunday:
