And some knitting news too

Besides the ABC-along, there's other knitting news going on in my little world.

For starters, I have TONS of time now to knit. Really, my life right now is cleaning, working out, and hobbies. This is the first time in over 4 years, since before Horrible Job in SC, that I've actually had enough time to really pursue my hobbies, instead of letting the supplies for them build up. Not a bad change! It'll be a nice break during whatever time we have left here in the desert, and whenever we get our orders and move (fingers crossed everyone!), I'll be ready to enter the workforce again, all recharged!

But, until then, I have plenty of time on my hands! So, the hobbies I'm focusing on are knitting and scrapbooking. Figure I'll try to work my way through a portion of my Netflix queue and get some projects done. Have tons of yarn and tons of pictures that are just waiting to be dealt with, and a mile-long queue to keep me supplied! So, expect lots of knitting pictures and chatting about movies :)

For the knitting realm, I'm almost done with my first big project of the year. When Mom came to visit last January (goodness, was that a whole year ago??), she brought with her a sweater that I'd made for her in college. She was so cute, "Is it bad manners to ask a knitter to redo a gift that they made for them?" Typically, the answer to that is a resounding YES. However, the gift that she was referring to was a sweater that, like I said, was made while I was in my senior year in college, as in a good 5, almost 6 years ago. This same sweater is one that she wears ALL the time in the winter (yet, I surprisingly don't have a picture of her in it). She likes that it's dressier-looking than a sweatshirt, but still sweatshirt-comfortable. And then there's the fact that her daughter made it for her. ;)

So what was the problem? Well, after the last 5 years of very regular wear, the sweater had gotten a little stretched out. Add to that, Mom has started running regularly, and has lost some weight as a result. Bottom line? The sweater which used to be comfortably baggy was now a sack around her. She could grab a handful of the sweater and still have a comfortably baggy sweater around her. So, no, I was not insulted that she was asking me to rework something she loved so that she could continue wearing it all the time.

As she was here visiting last January, she and Zach would sit and chat and rip out the sweater. I left that to them, as it's still hard for me to totally undo something I've done. :) When she left, she left behind the yarn, which sat in a bag until November when I was ready to start work on it again.

I started the sweater again in November, thinking that I'd do that sweater as my project for National Sweater Knitting Month (NaKniSweMo). To be honest, with work and everything else at that time, I didn't seriously think that I could finish the sweater in a month, but I did see it as a good chance to get my butt in gear and at least start the project. My goal (rather optimistic one) was to get the sweater done in time to put in Mom's Christmas box.

Still, although the sweater was not done in time for the Christmas box, it will be done shortly, so Mom will still to wear some this winter.

The sweater itself is the classic E Zimmerman Percentage system sweater. There's a good article about it over at Knitty. Lots of knitting in the round, very little seaming. My kind of sweater! I've been working on it as much as I can over the past few months, and am just about done. I joined the sleeves to the rest of the body on Saturday (Scruffy is inspecting the work in the picture below - yes, he really does sit like that) and have reached the decreases now. Once the decreases start, the rounds start going quickly, so pretty much in the home stretch now! After this, it'll just be seaming those 14 stitches under each arm and weaving in a whole bunch of ends. :)

Once Mom's sweater is done, I'll move on to more acrylic projects for family! I don't know if I've announced this yet, but I'm due to be an aunt this spring!! My brother-in-law and his wife are expecting twin boys this spring, so there will be plenty of baby knitting in my future! Zach's grandmother made each of the grandchildren a blanket when they were little, different allover cable patterns for each of them, and they all still use them now. Since Granny has passed away, I (as the only knitter in the family) inherited her needles, some yarn, and a lot of her notes, including the cable patterns she used in several of the blankets. So, each of the twins will be getting a blanket this year made from Granny's patterns. They will be different colors and different patterns, in keeping with tradition (also keeps me from getting bored!). I have chosen the color for the first one, and am figuring out what color I want to do for the second. Will have plenty of time to decide, since it's still a while before I'll be starting the second blanket!

Little filler projects for the spring include a simple shrug for me, and finishing up a carrying set for my yoga stuff. Oh yeah, and all my homework swatches for Stitches West! Can't forget those! Pictures will come, as always.

Review: Emma

This is the 1996 version, in case you had any questions, as like most Austen stories, there's only about a dozen different movie versions floating about :)

For those who are not Austen aficionados, Emma is a matchmaker who is constantly getting the matches wrong. Comedy of manners with lots of romance in polite society. Everyone learns a lesson and has a happy ending. You know, typical Jane Austen.

I loved the period details of the piece. It had a lovely feel to it. Very calm and escapist sort of movie. And (totally random side note) as a knitter, the shawls in the movie are GORGEOUS!

Casting was great. I like Gwyneth Paltrow alright, though she's by far not my favorite actress, but she was very suited to the flighty, well-meaning Emma. Toni Collette was wonderful as always, playing Harriett, the subject of Emma's matchmaking "help." Juliet Stevenson was suitably irritating as Mrs Elton, and Alan Cummings was well cast as her husband. I loved Miss Bates though! Played by Sophie Thompson (younger sister of Emma!), she is just perfect!! She was also Aggie, the maid in Sherlock Holmes' "The Master Blackmailer" (the Jeremy Brett version) and Dorothy in Gosford Park. Very suited to period pieces, she's one of those faces that you see and recognize, but might not be able to place right away - unless you make a constant challenge of it, like several folk who shall not be named ;) She is so well meaning yet so irritating that when Emma has her snippish scene at the picnic, it's just heart-breaking seeing Miss Bates be hurt. Best scene in the movie. Not in a malicious way, wanting to see Miss Bates hurt, but it's so well played, Miss Bates hurt and Knightley scolding Emma. So well done! And as a kicker, it's Phyllida Law (Thompson's real life mother) playing Mrs. Bates, her mother :)

I liked Ewan McGregor as Frank Churchill, but why did they give him such a bad haircut?? He played the warm, engaging flirt to perfection, but that hair was just distracting at times, when you know he can be SO much better looking. (sigh)

And I remember having a discussion with Mom while she was in one of her English classes about good Austen heroes in film, i.e. Colin Firth vs Alan Rickman vs Hugh Grant and so on. (By the way, our two favorites are Colin Firth and Alan Rickman). The hero here is Jeremy Northam playing Knightley. Very nice choice. Like Emma herself, Knightley wasn't my favorite Austen hero. I guess having someone match one of my less favorite heroines means that he is by extension not one of my favorite heroes? But Northam plays him very well, turns him into a very warm and human character. Ended up liking Knightley much better after this movie!

Silly note: at the ball, Emma and Knightley dance to the same song (therefore, the same dance) as Lizzie and Darcy in the BBC version of P&P! I know - MAJOR dork moment, but it made me smile! I was in the kitchen as that scene was playing and realized I was humming to the music, so I backed it up to see, and yes, same song, same dance!

And for those who care about these things, here's some trivia: Both Thompson sisters are married to people that they met of the set of Sense and Sensibility (another favorite of mine). Emma is married to Greg Wise, who played Willoughby, and Sophie is married to Richard Lumsden, who played Roger Ferrars (the brother). The things you learn on IMDB! Sophie wasn't in that Austen movie, but with Emma being so involved... Austen is such a matchmaker!

Overall: 4 of 5. Emma wasn't ever my favorite Austen story, but it's still Austen and they do it justice here. A nice change from heavy CGI and explosions or bleak dramas. A nice, sweet change of pace. And of course, a good Austen hero doesn't hurt :)

A is for...

Acrylic!

Deep down, I'd love to be a yarn snob. I'd love to have A is for Alpaca. But that's not the way life goes. When you look at my stash, the acrylics definitely win by quantity! I started knitting seriously when I started college, almost 10 years ago now (10 years this summer - gah! getting old!) and let's face it, college budgets aren't designed for knitters! You simply cannot afford Malabrigo when you're a full time student. But Red Heart or Caron, those are available! And even though it's been nearly 10 years now, in some ways I still haven't outgrown that mindset. Dollar for dollar, I can get a lot more knitting time out of some charity projects in an acrylic, compared to the amount of time I can get out of the same price of a nicer yarn. When you're learning to knit, you aren't ready for the nicer, but more expensive, sock yarns where you can still get a lot of stitch time for your money. So, it's either use some of the cheaper stuff or find another hobby!

That doesn't mean I'm not choosy though! There are a lot of acrylic yarns that are scratchy and I hate working with, and there are even a few that I physically can't work with - I have very dry skin, and when the yarn is so coarse, it's catching on all the dry skin on my hands and just making it worse... well, that kinda rules it out as a possible choice. Part of why knitting shops are such a tactile experience. If you hate working with the yarn, you'll never finish the project!

And acrylic's not a horrible yarn. It's long lasting, takes forever to fade, and pretty easy care. Zach has a blanket that his grandmother made for him as a baby nearly 30 years ago, and so do each of his siblings and cousins. All the blankets are still in use, and still holding up very well. I'll be making 2 of those blankets this spring for my nephews on their way (more on that later this spring - lots more!) so I'll be dealing with a LOT of Red Heart and/or Caron this spring. But it means that my nephews-to-be will also have blankets to last them for years to come.

And acrylic has the nicety of no-dye-lot options! I've been remaking a sweater for Mom the last few months, and as I was reworking it, I needed more yarn. I was reworking the sweater on a smaller needle, so I could use the same yarn for most of it, but needed a bit more to finish the project. So, into Town I went to hit up the craft stores. Lo and behold, the color hasn't been discontinued, and I was able to pick up more. Even though it's about 5 years later, it's still the same color, and I can finish the sweater just fine. Yay for Caron One Pounds! Try doing that with some of the hand-dyed wools out there!

Granted acrylic's not an all-purpose yarn (I'd NEVER use it for socks, for example, and I'd be pretty picky if I was choosing an acrylic for charity chemo caps, or something else that should be very very soft) but it's pretty good for a lot of sweaters and blankets and such that will be facing heavy use. And it's great for charity work, too, because you can work up projects without spending a bundle. As one of my grandmothers was cleaning out her stash, I inherited a lot of acrylics, and am considering different baby blanket patterns for the chapel here on post. They regularly run an add in the local newspaper looking for donations, so I figure maybe I can work on one or two when the twins' blankets are done (whenever that may be!). If I had inherited bunches of hand-dyed sock yarn, you can bet I'd be looking for other projects to use it for than baby blankets!

Coming Soon!

Yes, am finally getting around to sorting all the pictures from our trip after Christmas. I know that I have plenty of time on my hands now that I'm not working, but we've also got about 400+ picture from the week to sort through. Gotta love digital cameras :) Can take plenty of pictures and ENSURE that you've got some good results. That's important too, when dealing with Zach, as he likes making goofy faces at the camera, instead of smiling for the picture. Silly to look back on in the computer and remember, but not the type of picture for a photo album, right?

So, anyway, am working on getting them all sorted. Next week, then I should have pictures from our trip up. Sequoia, Yosemite, and King's Canyon - all very beautiful parks, and I've got lots to share now!

Should I be concerned?

Stewie Griffin

You are Stewie Griffin! You're an evil genius with a strong desire to, shall we say, 'eliminate' certain people, including your mother Lois. You are intelligent, calculating and bossy, yet still possess a childish manner. You love your teddy bear Rupert, are fascinated by Teletubbies and enjoy making fun of your father Peter. World domination could be yours...so go for it!

Family Guy Quiz from Dumb-Spot.com!

Hmmm.... intelligent, bossy and love my teddy bear? This may be more accurate than I thought. I always thought I was more of a Brian, without the arrogance, or a slightly cooler Meg, but apparently not!

Dang, these things are addicting (and for anyone else taking this, yes it does have the obnoxious support-our-sponsors nonsense to get the results, but if you try to close the window, you can skip straight ahead to your results).

REALLY????

A new Clash of the Titans?? I mean, the cast looks good (Liam Neeson as Zeus, for example), but CLASH OF THE TITANS?? Really?! Are they so short of stories they are remaking this one? I like the old one simply for all it's cheesy glory - the 6+ years of Latin and Classics classes mean that I cringe inwardly at the fast-and-loose mythology (and they were indeed fast and loose). Being made now, they'll try to take themselves seriously, too, won't they? No campy fun. Like Troy and Alexander...

Of course, all this also begs the question, will the mechanical owl also return??

Again, says Max!

And the ABC-along continues!

I had fun with the letters in 2008 and 2009, and the group is planning on continuing into 2010, and I will too, whether the group does or not! :) Makes you look at what's in your life in a little different way. This year I'm planning to challenge myself a little and try a theme. The theme this year is.... (drum roll please)... knitting. Maybe next year I'll do travel, but this year, Knitting is the name of the game. And of course, the standing challenge of trying to get them all posted on time too!

If you missed out on the introduction over the past years, the goal is to post a photo every two weeks to correspond with a letter of the alphabet. There are 52 weeks in a year and 26 letters of the alphabet, allowing two weeks per letter (Weeks 1&2=A, Weeks 2&3=B). Example: - “A” is for… Alaska, asparagus, alpaca, astronomy… Whatever is chosen, it should reflect the personality of the photographer, and something of importance or meaning to them. The goal is to post to one's blog, the ABC-along Flickr group, and/or the Ravelry ABC-along group.

Here's the posting schedule with dates:

January 1 - January 16 = A
January 17 - January 30 = B
January 31 - February 13 = C
February 14 - February 27 = D
February 28 - March 13 = E
March 14 - March 27 = F
March 28 - April 10 = G
April 11 - April 24= H
April 25 - May 8 = I
May 9 - May 22 = J
May 23 - June 5 = K
June 6 - June 19= L
June 20 - July 3 = M
July 4 - July 17 = N
July 18 - July 31 = O
August 1 - August 14 = P
August 15 - August 28 = Q
August 29 - September 11 = R
September 12 - September 25= S
September 26 - October 9 = T
October 10 - October 23 = U
October 24 - November 6 = V
November 7 - November 20 = W
November 21 - December 4 = X
December 5 - December 18 = Y
December 19 - January 1, 2010 = Z

Here we go!

PS - the title reference is from Max & Ruby, a children's book series (and later, a TV show) with a pair of incredibly cute, incredibly bunchy rabbits as the title characters. I know I used it last year, but due to smaller cousins, it really has become a family expression, so I will continue to use it :) Besides, aren't they adorable??