Lazy Day Reading

It took me awhile to get through Cara Hoffman's So Much Pretty.  I knew nothing about this book when I picked it up, but was drawn to the title and the paperback cover when I chanced upon it at the bookstore a few months back.  A precocious Alice Piper grows up in a rural, Upstate New York town with hippie parents and a unique point of view.  This novel follows her and the other characters' various narratives about life in the small town, the disappearance of one of the town's young women and the role they each inevitably and sometimes unwittingly play.  It was an interesting read, but somewhat choppy.  I don't generally mind changes in point of view throughout a story but I've read other books where the transitions are much more fluid.  All in all, it was an entertaining read with an interesting outcome, but in the end, I found it somewhat lacking.  The characters weren't developed as much as I'd like, which may have had something to do with the way the story was told.  This is not a lengthy book and I got through rather large chunks at a time, but it wasn't one of those can't-put-it-down kind of reads.  Trying to decide what's next up in my reader's queue:  the Dragon Tattoo books or Hunger Games or something else altogether.  So much to read, so little time.

Lazy Saturday

Is it just me or are most books these days being published as serials?  I suppose that's all well and good, but it sure does add to the already lengthy "to read" list.  In any event, my chosen series of late are the Flavia de Luce books about the eleven-year old sleuth who's obsessed with poisons.  There's a nostalgic flair about these books partly because they're set in 1950s England and partly because they remind of me of books I enjoyed as a child.  I've been happy to find the eBook editions in my local library's collection, so I've been sneaking in a few pages here and there off my Nook while waiting in courtrooms for my cases to be called.  Sped through the rest of The Weed that Strings the Hangman's Bag (Book 2) today, hunkered down at home with the cat keeping me company.  Who needs an electric blanket when you've got a sixteen-pound lap cat?

While I hang out on the waiting list for the next book in the series, I'm going old school with a stand-alone paperback, So Much Pretty.

On the Bandwagon

The Game of Thrones bandwagon, that is. Recommendations for the series came at me from every direction and finally I succumbed to see what all the fuss was about.

The fuss is well-deserved.

So far, anyway.

I'm halfway through A Storm of Swords (Book 3) right now and have spent pretty much every waking free moment I have with the Starks, Lannisters, direwolves and dragons. Unfortunately, things have gotten in the way of my speeding through to the end like oh, say, work (back to back trials - ugh!) and sleep (unfortunately, much needed when doing back to back trials). Sheesh!

Okay, I admit, I did sneak some time in there to go catch the Harry Potter finale and attend the Chicken Inferno, but other than that, haven't been up to much else.





On that note, back at it I go. Perhaps when I've gotten through to its current end (Book 5, with two left in the series, publishing date tbd), the HBO series will have made it to Netflix. (I don't have cable).

Countdown to Harry Potter

No matter how good the movie, the books are better. I can think of few exceptions to this rule and the Harry Potter productions are not one of them. That being said, I enjoy the movies and look forward to every new installment. When Goblet of Fire came out two movies ago, I hadn't had time reread the book before seeing it. Reading it afterwards allowed me to appreciate both. During the movie, I didn't remember enough specifics from the book to notice what was missing while reading it afterward was a rediscovery of scenes forgotten. I employed the same philosophy for Order of the Phoenix, confirming this wasn't a fluke.



This time 'round I've actually got a bit of time so I intend to reread books 1-5, saving Half Blood Prince for after the movie. Over the last two days, I've zipped through books 1-2 and started Azkaban (my favorite!). Now, if I can just pace myself I won't be tempted to read Prince until after the movie ...

This has become a food blog of late, but that has more to do with actually being inspired to cook lately. Since I joined that food collective at work , not only am I determined to use up all my produce, I'm trying to work in new recipes as well. There's been good and not so good.

I've discovered that I really don't like radishes -- well, not unless they are prepared the Korean way (a la mom) but for those, I need Daikon radishes - not these garden radishes. I found this salad idea but found myself picking out only the avocado to eat, leaving the radishes behind. They are too bitter for me, I guess. The idea of cooking them doesn't appeal to me at all. Warm radishes? Just the thought is like fingernails on a chalkboard. Oh well.

But. Garlic scapes? They are a whole different animal. They even look like one!



I'd never heard of these until they appeared in my weekly delivery. They came with a pesto recipe, but I wanted to find other uses. I discovered they perfectly complemented the leftover sausage ravioli I had -- sauteed in olive oil with basil and oregano and then tossed with the ravioli. They're milder than actual garlic, with a slight sweetness. Despite looking like a curly version of scallions, they are much firmer and have a nice crunch.

But the real winner this past week is this Indian twist I found.



I used Dutch Gold potatoes since I had them lying around. I wanted to add some meat to the dish, so while the potatoes were cooking, I browned a pound of ground turkey seasoned with salt, pepper and about 2 teaspoons garam masala and then set it aside. Since the meat was seasoned with the masala, I opted not to add Indian chilies as the recipe recommends. Instead, after adding the panch phoran, I stirred the veggies about a minute. Then I added the meat and continued cooking until the mustard seeds began to pop. Topped it off with this simple raita. I wish I had more scapes to throw in, but I used the last of the bunch. This is definitely something I will make again, though I suppose I will need to find a substitute for the scapes once their season is over ...

Last but not least, a little shout out to what is becoming my new favorite LYS. Though the Village Yarn Shop will always have a soft spot in my heart it is not as convenient since it moved from its downtown location. I often find myself instead at the Yarn Boutique which is a bigger (just big enough that it's quite cozy!) and better reincarnation of the former Knit n Purl, since it's just up the street. I was there earlier this week and they wound my yarn for me -- winding three hanks of this Cascade 220 in less time than it would take me to wind one [the old fashioned way of course with the hank looped around my knees and my thumb's circulation being cut off].



I've been to other shops where they point you in the direction of the winder and let you have at it, which is fine, but what service! Wonder whether Spirit Work will pick up the habit when it moves in just down the way ... Of course, with three yarn shops all within a relatively easy distance, I certainly can't complain!

Knowing When To Say Goodbye

I've been knitting quite a bit over the past couple months, and my WIP pile has, thankfully, gotten smaller and smaller. Still, today I decided to reevaluate my remaining projects and seriously consider their futures. As a result, projects that really have no chance at completion got frogged -- and I must say, it was quite refreshing. I've narrowed the to-do list down to two projects, opening the way to new ones with much less guilt. Recently completed projects (for more info, see my Ravelry page):



In the meantime, the library is feeding my addiction at an acceptable pace, and I started Breaking Dawn yesterday, with just a few chapters left. If the Oscars end at a reasonable time, I might even finish the book tonight, though I'm not quite as into this last volume as I was with the other three. We'll see how I feel when it's done.

Patience is a Virtue ...

So they say. Not sure how virtuous I can be though while I wait for my number to come up in the library system for Stephenie Meyer's Eclipse. Of the 78 copies in the county library system, they are all either checked out, on hold or in transit for hold. And I'm Number 46 on the list. This is what you get for getting on the bandwagon with everyone else who is devouring the teen fiction vampire series. I was at a holiday party when one of the guests recommended Twilight with such passion, that I was intrigued.  I had no idea that I was going to get just as mesmerized as she and that I would have to read it through in one sitting. The following weekend I zipped through the second book, New Moon. Unfortunately, Eclipse isn't out in paperback until August 2009 and I'm not really willing to shell out the buckaroos for the hardcover... though, if my number doesn't come up in the next month, I don't know if I can hold out!

I haven't posted since I finished the Scrunchable Cowl (can I say, really quick knit?!). Managed to get it done in two football games (playoff weekends serve a dual purpose, yay!).

I'm feeling oh so productive as I've actually been finishing stuff lately.

So now I'm back to an older project, the I Do shrug from Knitty. I started this last spring in hopes of having it ready for my final concert, as I think it will pair wonderfully with a black dress I have that doesn't fit the sleeve requirement for concert dress. The sweater I often wear with it is just too warm for the hot stage; especially in the spring months. So I'm hoping that this shrug is lacy enough to keep me from overheating.

I hadn't gotten too far when I started it then, and I'm glad I didn't, as I had cast on way too many pattern repeats and in picking it up again, couldn't figure out where I even got that number from as it didn't seem to meet any of the sizes set forth in the pattern. After frogging that, I had to rip back again when I realized I twisted my join (Arrgh!). Third time was the charm though and I finally got through the first sleeve. The lace pattern is easy to memorize and is so simple that I can even watch tv while knitting this pattern and don't have to count too much (bonus!) -- though watching tv may have had something to do with my inexplicable cast on number during "take 1". At any rate, it's knitting up much quicker than I anticipated, so I might actually get to wear it before the orchestra breaks for the summer.

Another Book Meme

A book list? Can't say no. Found it over on Ken's blog. As he said, no, having watched the movie doesn't count.

These are the top 106 books most often marked as 'unread' by LibraryThing's users (as of some time in the past). As usual, bold what you have read, italicize those you started but couldn't finish, and strike through what you couldn't stand. Add an asterisk to those you've read more than once. Underline those on your to-read list.

Jonathan Strange & Mr Norrel*
Anna Karenina
Crime and Punishment
Catch-22
One Hundred Years of Solitude*
Wuthering Heights*
The Silmarillion
Life of Pi : a novel
The Name of the Rose
Don Quixote
Moby-Dick
Ulysses
The Odyssey
Pride and Prejudice****
Jane Eyre*
A Tale of Two Cities
The Brothers Karamazov
Guns, Germs, and Steel: The Fates of Human Societies
War and Peace
Vanity Fair
The Time Traveler's Wife
The Iliad
Emma*
The Blind Assassin
The Kite Runner
Mrs. Dalloway
Great Expectations*
American Gods
Atlas Shtrugged
Reading Lolita in Tehran: A Memoir in Books
Memoirs of a Geisha
Middlesex
Quicksilver
Wicked: The Life and Times of the Wicked Witch of the West
The Canterbury Tales
The Historian: A Novel
A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man
Love in the Time of Cholera
Brave New World
The Fountainhead
Foucault's Pendulum
Middlemarch
Frankenstein
The Count of Monte Cristo
Dracula
A Clockwork Orange
Anansi Boys
The Once and Future King*
The Grapes of Wrath*
The Poisonwood Bible: A Novel
1984
Angels & Demons
The Inferno
The Satanic Verses
Sense and Sensibility
The Picture of Dorian Gray
Mansfield Park*
One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest
To the Lighthouse*
Tess of the D'Urbervilles*
Oliver Twist
Gulliver's Travels
Les Misérables*
The Corrections
The Amazing Adventures of Kavalier and Clay
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time
Dune
The Prince
The Sound and the Fury
Angela's Ashes: A Memoir
The God of Small Things
A People's History of the United States: 1492-Present
Cryptonomicon
Neverwhere
A Confederacy of Dunces
A Short History of Nearly Everything
Dubliners
The Unbearable Lightness of Being
Beloved
Slaughterhouse-Five*
The Scarlet Letter* -- Can't figure out how to strikethrough. I truly hate this book. Only read it again because I had to for a class.
Eats, Shoots & Leaves*
The Mists of Avalon
Oryx and Crake: A Novel
Collapse: How Societies Choose to Fail or Succeed
Cloud Atlas
The Confusion
Lolita
Persuasion*
Northanger Abbey
Catcher in the Rye*
On the Road
The Hunchback of Notre Dame
Freakonomics: a Rogue Economist Explores the Hidden Side of Everything
Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance: an Inquiry into Values
The Aeneid
Watership Down
Gravity's Rainbow
The Hobbit*
White Teeth
Treasure Island
David Copperfield
The Three Musketeers

Obsessed with Austen

Anyone who knows me knows that I am insatiably (sp?) obsessed with everything Austen. So, when I heard about Shannon Hale's Austenland on NPR a few months ago, I just had to check it out. It's a hysterical, quick read and I think will be much appreciated by anyone who loves the BBC miniseries. There is apparently, according to Ms. Hale, a contingency out there completely appalled at her seeming "attack" on Austen-ites, but I really saw it as a tribute to Austen and her fans. Hale's main character sets off to England to partake in her distant rich relation's parting gift to her -- three weeks at Austenland, a fantasy world where Austenites dress up and live as the Regency English would have and live out their favorite Austen storylines.

On the flip side, anyone who appreciates Austen should most definitely skip Mr. Darcy Takes a Wife, which is just pure smut and devoid of any wit. To be sure, there are passages in there that are just laugh-out-loud funny -- as my summer traveling companions can attest to as they often witnessed my chuckling outbursts -- but it's about as satisfying a sequel as Alexandra Ripley's Scarlett is to Gone With the Wind (i.e., wholly incredible, superficial and lacking the depth of the original). Standing alone, Berdoll's attempt at a Bennett-Darcy sequel is a decent summer romance read -- light and ridiculous. As a tribute to Jane Austen and Pride and Prejudice? A complete failure.

No Sleep Till ...

... Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is done. Picked up a copy first thing in the morning yesterday at my local Wegman's to take with me to the 9th Annual Chicken Inferno. At the risk of being antisocial, I spent a significant chunk of the afternoon on Hopkins Hill in the sun with the highly anticipated final installment, while other attendees kindly encouraged my retreat into the magical world with nods of understanding and a few longing glances at my sole copy on the Hill.

I wasn't completely immune to the festivities -- after all, there was the food. And the comraderie. And the game of Catch Phrase. And of course once the sun went down, it was all about the Glorious Chicken.





For a number of other reasons, I ended up not camping out and instead made it a day trip down with friend Kari. We got back into town a little before 1 am, and I hunkered down for a sleepless night for the remaining 500 pages. I finished up a little before 9 am this morning. Don't worry, no spoilers here. I'll save my thoughts on this for a later date. In the meantime, I think I'm going to hit my porch rocking chair for a reread.

Can't Think of a Good Title

I've been feeling a bit lost lately, as far as the knitting goes.

Last week I finished this:



I had been wanting a fun stripey scarf for some time, and this was an easy knit to work on especially at knitting club, where pattern simplicity guarantees forward progress (it's my favorite tried and true "mistake rib" stitch -- cast on multiples of 6, and repeat two rows. R1: K3, P3; R2: K1, P1.)

I did however get a bit carried away, knitting down to every last inch of each color I had left of this Debbie Bliss Merino DK. My scarf philosophy has always been, the longer the better, but this is a tad silly:



That's with it wrapped once around my neck!

In all seriousness, wrapping it around several times is rather fitting for this skinny, stripey, Seussian bit. It wasn't planned, but the finished product does invoke the good Doctor, no?

However, since I've finished that off, I've been rather uninspired.

I've attempted to finish this:



and this (hmm, bears a striking resemblance to WIP above in both pattern and status!):



before moving onto this (to practice the newly learned 2-handed knitting technique -- thank you Kelly):



All, to no avail.

Though I did have a mini burst of energy yesterday to begin a pair of these (it helps to be working on Size 7 needles, in a worsted weight yarn):



On the upside, the lack of knitting wherewithal has given me a whole lotta time to indulge my bookworm half. I spent nine straight hours Saturday night immersed in the final volume of the Mr. Darcy, Gentleman trilogy. This last volume was definitely the best of the three. Overall, I think Aidan did an admirable job culling Mr. Darcy's side of the story. I didn't necessarily care for all the liberties she took but still, it remained pretty true to the spirit of the original. I'd certainly recommend this book to other Austen-loving fans.

Duty and Desire and Thank You, Kate!

I recently finished the second installment in Pamela Aidan's series about Fitzwilliam Darcy. I was a bit unsure after reading the first book which I enjoyed, but wasn't wholly won over by. What I am liking about this series is that it's not a retelling or a sequel to the beloved Pride and Prejudice; rather, it's Darcy's tale. While Aidan's writing lacks Austen's sharp wit, she doesn't try to write like Austen, and keeps to her own engaging style. Much of the second book is more reminiscent of Austen's Northanger Abbey, which parodies the gothic novel (think, Bronte sisters). Aidan makes an interesting jump in doing this, but the tale was more or less amusing. I'm looking forward to the final installment when Darcy reunites with Elizabeth (will they or won't they get together?), which is rumoured to be republished in January.

Also, I wanted to shout out a public thank you to Kate for the lovely armwarmers I got in the Chicks With Sticks Chickmas Exchange.



Lucky me, to be Kate's giftee! I'd been drooling over these armwarmers since she began making them over the summer, and particularly this red color. She also gave me Knit Lit The Third. I've seen this series around, but hadn't got around to reading them yet, so thanks for getting me started!

Bookworm

What Kind of Reader Are You? Your Result: Dedicated Reader   You are always trying to find the time to get back to your book. You are convinced that the world would be a much better place if only everyone read more.
Obsessive-Compulsive Bookworm
Literate Good Citizen
Book Snob
Non-Reader
Fad Reader
What Kind of Reader Are You? Create Your Own Quiz

Lists.

Lists are all well and good, but getting through them isn't always an easy task. My knitting queue currently consists of: Cozy (which recently resurfaced after a long hibernation at the bottom of my knitting bag); the Trellis Scarf (from Interweave Knits Spring 06) and River. Oddly, they're actually all very similar projects -- flat, lace scarf/wrap-ish items. In all their similarities though, they are so very different, due simply to the yarn used. I'm knitting Cozy with a worsted weight wool/rayon, that's much heavier than the other two, which I think will make a lovely wrap for the fall. The Trellis Scarf, in contrast, is in a lace weight alpaca/silk that just floats through my fingers as I knit. I'm working this up on much larger needles than called for, to make it even airier, and I'm adding a bit of width to it, so it can serve as a summer wrap or fall scarf when doubled. River in Kidsilk Haze, yields yet a different texture, and I can't wait to finish and block it, just to see the lace open up in all its Kidsilk glory. I've also been playing around with the Be Sweetthat Kate turned me on to, and making a pair of armwarmer sleeves (also Kate's fault) in the delightful Baby Pink. However, I confess I haven't been doing much knitting; hence, little progress on the list.

As for my insanely ambitious summer reading list, that too remains, with many reads still to go. Today, I did manage to finish Beyond Band of Brothers: The War Memoirs, which I enjoyed, in spite of the simplistic writing style. Though, that's to be expected from such a humble man as Major Winters I think, and any other voice would have seemed false. These memoirs don't add much to the story so poignantly told by Spielberg and Hanks, but for any fan of the miniseries, or Ambrose's book, it's a good companion.

As an update to my last post, Neda and her sons, with the help of some friends, managed to get safely out of Southern Lebanon. There are still many civilians there though, so please keep them in your thoughts.

A New Kind of Voodoo ...

Well, not exactly, but it does kind of look like it, doesn't it, with all those pins in it? I was looking for some light knitting to do and this seemed perfect, as well as a great way to use up some oddball yarn. Eventually, it will become one of the Knitted Babes.

I bust out laughing when I laid out this front body piece and realized that the scraps of yarn I used as markers inadvertently look like the limbs. Couldn't resist taking the photo.

Over the lovely long weekend I zipped through Pamela Aidan's An Assembly Such as This, the first book in the Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman series. It's an entertaining tale in and of itself, but not wholly satisfying as a companion to Austen's Pride and Prejudice. Maybe I'll feel different after I read the whole series though; that is, if I can get my hands on it. There appears to be nary a copy of either the second or third book anywhere in our public library system, despite its 30 branches! The reference librarian cited it was likely due to budget problems. Libraries should not have budget problems. Go donate to your local library, please.

I did however manage to snag the library's copy of the first season of Coupling and laughed my ass off. I've seen most of the episodes before (check it out on BBCAmerica), but each viewing is as fresh and funny as it was the first time 'round. I once heard it described as the British version of Friends, but really, the only thing it seems to have in common with it is the fact that the main characters are three girls and three guys who happen to be friends. Really, it's a show about couples and sex, and the different takes men and women have on those topics. Oh, and it's way funnier. As for NBC's attempt at an American version? It's a wonder they even thought it could work.

First Love, Rediscovered.

I've loved books for as long as I can remember. My mother's most effective way of grounding me was to take away whatever book I was reading at the time (this usually came about as I was at the last chapter, too!). I often traded sleep for "just one more chapter."

Even as a law student, I found time to read, and was more likely to be found at the local coffee shop reading a novel, than in the library with Torts (can you blame me?). Then a little over a year ago, I discovered knitting. I had been crocheting regularly for several years long before I (re)learned how to knit, but crocheting never detracted from my reading -- I still managed to read several books a month. Knitting however, changed my life. I became obsessive, and had to knit during every spare moment I had, and even started this blog because of it. I've often bemoaned here and and to my knit club crew about the lack of time (and even will) to read since I've picked up those sticks.

Today, for the first time in a long time, pj-clad and coffee in hand, I spent an afternoon reading, rediscovering its joys. I started The Cave over a year ago, but got distracted, and never got back to it. It's one of those books that you need a chunk of time to get into -- not a pop-lit-ten-minutes-here-and-there kind of read. This novel is so melodically constructed that it's hard not to get lost in it purely on language alone -- and this a translation from the original Portuguese. I have yet to read Saramago's other critically acclaimed works, and know little about him except for his Marxist tendencies, but based on Heather's recent post, Blindess will be added to my reading queue. In The Cave, a widowed village potter is challenged when the Center, an entertainment/mall/apartment congolomerate, tells him his pottery is outdated and unprofitable, and will not be filling any more orders with him. He proposes to produce ceramic dolls instead, in the hopes that these will appeal to the modern consumer, and provide him with a living. In the meantime, his son-in-law, who works at the Center, awaits patiently for a promotion, so that his family can move there. A stray dog, the potter's daughter and a neighboring widow add to this tale that takes an unanticipated philosophical twist that in hindsight is of course the only way for the story to be told. It's been a long time since I've read a novel, let alone one that was as thoroughly satisfying as this one.

Summer reading lists abound now, and I join in the game. I've stolen a couple from Seth for my own list:

The Fitzwilliam Darcy, Gentleman Trilogy, Pamela Aidan
Mr. Potter, Jamaica Kincaid
Everyman, Philip Roth
Send Me, Patrick Ryan
I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith

The Mighty and the Almighty: Reflections on America, God, and World Affairs, Madeleine Albright
Friday Night Lights, H.G. Bissinger
A Short History of Nearly Everything, Bill Bryson
The Piano Shop on the Left Bank: Discovering a Forgotten Passion in a Paris Atelier, Thad Carhart
Living to Tell the Tale, Gabriel Garcia Marquez
Perilous Times: Free Speech in Wartime from the Sedition Act in 1798 to the War on Terror, Geoffrey R. Stone
Beyond Band of Brothers, Dick Winters

The Penderwicks: A Summer Tale of Four Sisters, Two Rabbits and a Very Interesting Boy, Jeanne Birdsall
Inkheart, Cornelia Funke
Eldest, Christopher Paolini

Yarn Harlot: The Secret Life of a Knitter, Stepha Pearl Mcphee


Yes, probably a bit ambitious, but I've heard it's good to have ambition, and I've turned off my cable for the summer months, so that should help!

A Delightful Find

Brownbag Bookshop -- how can a shop monikered so be anything but delightful?! I'd driven by this place several times before, but hadn't yet stopped in. Last weekend I did a spring cleaning of sorts and came up with a handful of books that I could actually bear to part with (not many fit that bill). So, this morning was as good a time as any to check out this establishment. Having done so may turn out to do more harm than good, as the little shop just oozed charm, with a sweet proprieter to boot. Before going in, I had already vowed that today was not to be a "buying" day, but a "selling" one, as the whole point was to streamline my collection. I was sorely tempted though when I found myself surrounded by bound paper in such a cozy atmosphere. I persevered however, and refrained from any browsing that might induce a purchase. I am self-imposing a moratorium on any new book-buying until I finish at least three unread ones. The promise of returning to what I sense will become my favorite bookshop lies ahead, and I can't wait to go back!

My friend Jen is in town this weekend so I met up with her last night to partake in some Irish celebrating. Our first stop was happy hour with her family and their friends. The group began dispersing around 9 or so, each headed their separate ways for the rest of the night. We ended up at a local bar that was insanely packed and reminiscent of a frat party. Not my normal choice for a night out these days, but it was certainly an interesting time.

The music was way too loud for any sort of real conversation, but we were quite amused by the drunken antics of our fellow patrons. Our first attempt to get a drink at the bar rendered us almost unable to get away from the bar to our friends, as we were surrounded by couples grinding, pushing us up into the bar. After some deft maneuvering we managed to escape to a back corner where a host of college-aged kids who had likely been enjoying themselves since the top of the morning were drunkenly singing and dancing along to songs that brought back memories of junior high (eg, Bon Jovi, AC/DC, etc.). They were clearly having so much fun, we couldn't be annoyed with them! Instead, we joined them, singing our hearts out and dancing away. Jen and I sought in vain for the DJ hoping to make a request for Ton Loc to add to the walk down memory lane, but he had already gone for the night, and it was just a sound system playing.

The rest of the night was essentially a montage of random wacky interactions. There was the guy she thought looked like Henry Rollins, and when she told him so, he told her he had never heard of him (for real?!). There was the guy who took a fancy to Jen's sister, thought he was being all suave by inching up behind her to dance with her, only to eventually realize that he had been doing the butt bump with a low table that was situated between the two (to her relief!). There was the guy that head-butted me in greeting because apparently, he thought that was a cool way to introduce himself (yeah, I don't get it either). There was the guy who walked by us and offered up one comment, in a very Vince Vaughn-like manner, "beautiful babies" before going on his way. And so on and so on ...

After three hours of that though, we had had our fill and it was time to leave, with cloudy heads and hoarse voices. Though I doubt I will be doing that again very soon, it was a fun time. Today, tea is my best friend.

Shades of Green

After long lust, I finally managed to get my hands on some Kidsilk Haze, which is the lovely spring green that is hanging out on the left. I usually go to The Village Yarn Shop, which is right next door to work, but sadly, they didn't carry it. So I had to wait until I had a chance to get myself over to Spirit Work, which wasn't until today. In the meantime, I began working up some Jo Sharp Rare Comfort Kid Mohair I had, which is the piece in the middle. It knits up quite beautifully:



Not exactly the best picture, but I wanted to show off the lace pattern, which was hard to capture given the "curly locks" of the brushed mohair, so I turned the flash off. Although it's hard to tell in these photos, it's a lovely, muted sage. Check out The Knitters' Review for more detail on this yarn.

At the right, and on the very bottom is Cozy, which I've finally managed to pick back up again, though it is moving slowly:



I suppose all this green is unintentionally fitting -- today was the St. Patrick's Day parade. I vaguely remembered hearing about it earlier in the week, but since I don't usually pay attention to these things, forgot about it until this morning. I haven't kept track of St. Patty's day since I was a student, and it was just another excuse for drinking! So I was a bit perplexed when I opened my blinds and saw all these cars parked up and down the street (then again, I am always perplexed in the morning, pre-coffee). Then I noticed one of the floats hanging out across the street, and I remembered. One of the downsides to living downtown is having to deal with these sorts of events. It took eons to get out of my street just so I could run errands, and then back in through the police blockades on my return home. I can't help it, but these things annoy me! Still, it was a beautiful day for a parade -- unseasonably warm for March in these parts -- and everyone looked like they were having fun, so I guess I can't begrudge them that!

My WIPs are trudging along at a snail's pace mostly because I've been reading like mad, zipping through The Two Towers and The Return of the King, finally! What makes these books so endearing to me is that every time I read them -- as well as my other regular rereads -- is that each new reading is precisely that -- new. I get so drawn in and need to know how it's going to end, as if I didn't already know. What can I say, I am a sucker for the written word. Now I can get back to real new reads!

I got some fun stuff from my secret pal earlier in the week:



Chocolate, more chocolate, note paper, a ball of Knit Picks Shadow (very generously wound up by my secret pal with her new ball winder!), and a copy of The Piano Shop on the Left Bank. I love merino so I've been eager to try this lace-weight yarn. Can't wait to have a go at it! There was also a tape measure, which I threw in my bag already -- so I can have one ready to go all the time! So, thanks, A!

Speaking of secret pals, I was busy today putting together my final package for my spoilee. One of my errands this morning included a stop to Michael's. I was admiring some beautiful stitch markers at the yarn shop the other day, but was reluctant to pay the sticker price on them. I'm always impressed by the folks out there in blogland making their own, and it occurred to me that I could too. I had some jewelry pliers and wire cutters languishing in a drawer from my law school days when a friend got into beading as a stress reliever, and got me momentarily hooked on the hobby as well. I had actually forgotten about them until I was staring at those insanely expensive markers. So I hied myself off to Michael's to get myself some beads. It took me a bit to get reacquainted with the pliers and figuring out how to manipulate the wire, but, eventually I managed and all in all, I'm pretty pleased:



Well, that's a wrap for now!

Just For Kicks

My dear old college pal Georgie has said that I talk too much about knitting on my, um, knitblog . Frankly, I'm quite flattered that he (and all you other non-knitting pals) even visits, despite the possibility that he may get stuck with an entire posting devoted to the tintilating appeal of Kidsilk Haze (more on that later). So, I stole this meme from Deb and just thought it was kinda fun, cuz I'm nerdy like that:

Instructions: Look at the list of books below. Bold the ones you've read, italicize the ones you might read, cross out the ones you won't, underline the ones on your book shelf [or, in the case of this html-challenged blogger, hi-lited in green], and place (parentheses) around the ones you've never even heard of.

The Da Vinci Code - Dan Brown
The Catcher in the Rye - J.D. Salinger
The Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy - Douglas Adams
The Great Gatsby - F.Scott Fitzgerald
To Kill a Mockingbird - Harper Lee
The Time Traveler's Wife - Audrey Niffenegger
His Dark Materials - Philip Pullman
Harry Potter and the Half-Blood Prince - J. K. Rowling
Life of Pi - Yann Martel
Animal Farm: A Fairy Story - George Orwell
Catch-22 - Joseph Heller
The Hobbit - J. R. R. Tolkien
The Curious Incident of the Dog in the Night-time - Mark Haddon
Lord of the Flies - William Golding
Pride and Prejudice - Jane Austen
1984 - George Orwell
Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban - J. K. Rowling
One Hundred Years of Solitude - Gabriel Garcia Marquez -- Quite possibly my favorite book of all time. One of these days, I will get my Spanish up to speed so I can read it the way it was written ... sigh. Someday ...
Memoirs of a Geisha - Arthur Golden
The Kite Runner - Khaled Hosseini
The Lovely Bones - Alice Sebold
Slaughterhouse 5 - Kurt Vonnegut
Angels and Demons - Dan Brown -- Despite having enjoyed Davinci..., I haven't been called by this one, yet.
Fight Club - Chuck Palahniuk -- I keep checking this out of the library, and then returning it before I've had a chance to get to it.
Neuromancer - William Gibson
Cryptonomicon - Neal Stephenson
The Secret History - Donna Tartt
A Clockwork Orange - Anthony Burgess
Wuthering Heights - Emily Bronte
Brave New World - Aldous Huxley
The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe - C. S. Lewis -- A very, very long time ago!
Middlesex - Jeffrey Eugenides
Cloud Atlas - David Mitchell
The Lord of the Rings - J. R. R. Tolkien
Jane Eyre - Charlotte Bronte
Good Omens - Terry Pratchett, Neil Gaiman
Atonement - Ian McEwan
The Shadow Of The Wind - Carlos Ruiz Zafon
The Old Man and the Sea - Ernest Hemingway
The Handmaid's Tale - Margaret Atwood
The Bell Jar - Sylvia Plath
Dune - Frank Herbert

The ones with no markings whatsoever are books that I'm indifferent about.

In other geeky news, I was rather amused by this article on the fate of "whom".

So, the Kidsilk Haze -- I made it to knitting club tonight (as opposed to last week when I never woke up from my catnap) and Kelly, sitting next to me, was working with it while I ogled it, and could not stop petting it. It's a good thing there's no such thing as yarn harassment because I'd be guilty as charged. I have heard raves about this yarn, and now I know what all the fuss is about. Now I must get my hands on some. Kelly, thank you for being so gracious to me, and opening up a new (potentially bank-breaking) world for me (not so thankful about that part!). Talk about yarn envy!

Competing Interests

So far, through this luxurious three-day weekend, I have done no knitting to speak of. I did however manage to finally get through The Fellowship of the Ring yesterday. Usually, by mid-February, I have finished re-reading the entire trilogy, an annual event for me. However, as my knitting skills improve, I find that I am often torn between the two time-consuming hobbies. Sigh. I know that some people enjoy audiobooks while knitting, or have mastered knitting while reading, but for me it's just not the same. I had an Audible membership for awhile, when I used to have an hour-plus commute (now, it's only 10 minutes!), but my preferred method of enjoying the written word, is precisely in that format. There's something glorious about curling up on the sofa, or under the down comforter, and flipping the pages, pondering, re-reading passages, and just letting myself get totally immersed.

As for today, I've got something else occupying my time. A hobby it is not, but a necessary evil: Laundry. Ugh. I. Hate. Doing. Laundry. While I bummed with my parents for a couple years, I had forgotten the nuisance of getting quarters to do laundry. I'm at least lucky enough to have machines in my building, but alas, no quarter machine. So, I have to remember to save them up, then count them up to see how many loads I can get through. Too much work for such a dreadful chore!

Chakali

My childhood friend S was Indian (Asian, not American), and as such, I was introduced to the cuisine at a very young age. What I remember very specifically and with much fondness are these crunchy, spicy snacks:



When her mom made these, she usually gave me a tin-full to take home. No one else in my family cared too much for them, so they were all mine! I had forgotten what they were called though, and may very well have forgotten about them entirely. I hadn't had them since I was young, and I can't remember the last time I thought of them. But last night, I was craving Indian food so I stopped off at the local restauarant on the way home. It wasn't open yet for dinner though. I noticed that the grocery store across the street (same owners) was open, so I popped in to confirm that the restaurant would be opening in a few minutes, and wasn't closed for any other reason. The happy and friendly proprietress confirmed it was so, and invited me to wander around while I waited. The shop reminded me of the Korean groceries that I'd frequented often with my mom. That memory led me to think of traditional snacks those groceries often held. A memory of these "crunchy, hard, pretzel-like, spicy snack-y thingies" then popped into my head, and I consulted with Ms. Proprietress, who knew exactly what I was talking about. She pointed me toward a bag -- they looked exactly like I remember them!

I told her of several failed attempts in the past to discover what they were called. Whenever I described it to various Indian friends (as I had long lost touch with S), they never seemed to know what I was talking about. She told me that they are also called murukku in the south. I'm thinking that my friends may have asked me if that was what I was talking about, but the word probably didn't sound familar. But now I know what they are and where I can get them!

I inherited a few more technique books over the Christmas holiday, courtesy of my bro. I am happy to announce the new additions to my knitting library:



Accompanying them, he touched on my other favorite hobby -- and gifted me with Terry Gross' Fresh Air collection of author interviews. What a lucky gal am I!

We saw Syriana over the holiday. A bit heavy for holiday fare, but I quite enjoyed it. It really is superbly done, though it doesn't all gel until the end. This definitely needs a second viewing.