First off, apologies for spoiling the finale of House! I lead a TiVo-free existence, so when I miss a show I have to watch it online or read a synopsis--I just assume everybody has seen everything before I do. Lesson learned, promise!

On that note, we saw the new Indiana Jones movie over the weekend [SPOILER FREE], and despite some snarky reviews of the movie we liked it a lot. The reviews I read misguidedly compared it to Raiders (arguably one of the best action movies ever) instead of, say, National Treasure (bleck). Also, they rejected the sillier elements of the plot instead of putting them in the context of 1957. The other three movies evoke serials and comic books from the 1930s, so it makes perfect sense that some of the more campy elements of the new movie are borrowed from B-movies and comics from the '50s. So there you go. It was a fun movie, even though I don't like Shia LeBoeuf.

In knitting news, I'm still trucking away on the socks and shawl... but remember that crochet Drops cardigan I was working on? Well, I finally woke up to the fact that it was going to be 67" wide at my gauge. It was really pretty, but I had to frog it. For whatever reason, I am determined to make an actual garment from this yarn (rather than a shawl, though Nereides is still there if I need it), so right now I'm working on this. But am I setting myself up for failure again? This project does indeed call for worsted yarn, and the cotton is pretty much a DK weight. My swatch was accurate--granted, it was a bit "airy", but I did like the effect. I'm currently toward the end of the first stockinette lace repeat (I've only done eight inches of ribbing total--the last thing I need is for the ribbing to go halfway up my boobs!), so I should have a good idea soon as to whether or not it will look like a hot mess. Wish me luck with this.

The other thing I'm working on is a cozy for my electric kettle--more to keep it clean and dust-free in the kitchen than to keep the water warm (it's amazingly good at doing that all by itself). According to my searches, Ravelry has no such pattern in its database, so I've decided to design one for myself. Depending on how successful I am (it's an interesting problem), I may actually submit the pattern to Ravelry. Also, I've been planning to type up my steering wheel cover pattern here and submit it (provided there's nothing too similar), so I should go ahead and do it.

So since I've seen this on two blogs now (Megan's and Amanda's), I suppose it's time for another meme...

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The rules of the game get posted at the beginning. Each player answers the questions about themselves. At the end of the post, the player then tags 5-6 people and posts their names, then goes to their blogs and leaves them a comment, letting them know they’ve been tagged and asking them to read your blog. Let the person who tagged you know when you’ve posted your answer.

1. What was I doing 10 years ago?
It was the summer before my senior year of college. I was working the summer at The Children's Place in the good ol' Galleria at Crystal Run (where shopping's always fun!), and had just hooked up with a certain blonde-Afro'ed theater major--a total coup, as far as I was concerned at the time--but that mildly creepy guy Aaron from my improv troupe was also way into me. Was that really ten years ago? Damn...

2. What are 5 things on my to-do list for today (not in any particular order):
-Thrift-shopping with Rebecca
-Fold laundry and change the sheets
-Clean the bathrooms (hurrah)
-Continue working on the cozy design (I'm knitting a cozy. Crazy times.)
-Make dinner, but only after Mark cleans up in the kitchen (the new counters are a nice change, by the way)

3. Snacks I enjoy:
Chocolate, fruit (peaches, berries, pineapple)

4. Things I would do if I were a billionaire:
First I would find a good lawyer and financial planner, so they could set up investments, foundations, etc. Then I would pay off my student loan and Mark's car, and get a Prius for myself (my baby will hit 200,000 miles today, I believe). Then we'd buy a house, probably in our current neighborhood on the greenway (all of which are like, quadruple our price range). Then make sure everyone we care about is well taken care of (it would be nice if my parents could retire a bit early, and my 79-year-old grandfather didn't have to mow his own huge lawn anymore). After that, end world hunger. That's the complicated part.

5. Places I have lived:
In New York: various places in Rockland County, Middletown, Rochester, Binghamton (Vestal)
In North Carolina: Wilmington, Greensboro, Raleigh

6. Jobs I have had:
Grocery bagger (ugh), cashier (various places), sales (at Sears, New York & Company and The Children's Place), switchboard operator at two different car dealerships (double ugh), customer service for a lab equipment company, office assistant for a contractor, editorial assistant for a physics journal--and opera singer. I prefer the last.

7. Peeps I want to know more about:
I hate putting that kind of pressure on people, so I'll just leave it up to you...

Do I look cold?


(My face looks weird there--if you click on it I look normal.) On our second-to-last day in Colorado (two weeks ago), we toured a gold mine, rode the cog railway to Pikes Peak (most of the way--it was too windy for the train to go all the way up) AND visited Garden of the Gods, where this picture was taken. Forty-plus mph winds, temperatures in the fifties and low oxygen made this not as fun as it could've been. I've mentioned here before how my in-laws don't believe in relaxing on vacation; this trip was no exception. Every day we were up at seven to go run around somewhere, and the time difference was no cushion because we were out until at least ten every night. I did get to buy this--


(Araucania Ranco Multi--hooray for more kettle-dyed sock yarn!)--and have high English tea at a beautiful old hotel, and eat elk steak (tasty) and Rocky Mountain oysters (overrated--the texture was weird, and the whole thing was very Fear Factor), AND I got to see my friend Stacey, but when we got home I was so exhausted, for like a week. My allergies were awful when we got back, and I seriously considered cancelling my audition last Saturday, but the company isn't having general auditions again until February so I made myself go through with it. I was certainly not at my best, but I did well enough to make a very good impression on the AD (who's heard me sing before, but only as a soprano or little bit roles). There may just be something in my future with this company, though probably not this coming season. And guess what Mark let me buy while we were in this nameless crunchy town on the Blue Ridge Parkway (hint hint):



Lace Malabrigo! I cannot describe how yummy this yarn is. Oh, and here's more.



I'm making a Swallowtail Shawl, partly as a mini-knitalong with Nik and a few others in the SnB. I've been ogling lace shawl patterns for a while, but I hesitated because I'm more of a stole/scarf person than a triangular shawl person. But it's just a really pretty pattern... And Mark was so sweet..."Why don't you get two of them?", he said. Though they were only nine dollars each (such a bargain!).

Speaking of Mark, I have begun working on his red Rhombus socks:



I've even double-checked the color with him. He says it's not too pink for him. Hell, as long as he likes it, I'm game (and it helps that the yarn is really nice to work with, and the pattern is fun).

What else? Um, I've finished Cathy's birthday socks and mailed them the other day (send me a picture, if you don't mind people ogling your feet). And my plane socks? Well, I decided they would be better for someone else, so they are destined to be a gift as well--no pictures for a little bit on those.

In other news, all this week our kitchen was in upheaval while new countertops, a new sink and a microwave hood were installed. The counters are not exactly fancy--more chipboard laminate--but they look pretty good, and they seem very easy to keep clean. Our old ones were so nasty--forty-year-old white laminate that was literally disintegrating. It makes the kitchen look so much cleaner. Of course, we are still planning to buy a house by the end of the year, but at least we'll get to enjoy it for the next few months.

Weekend plans: tomorrow we put away laundry, Sunday Mark's making barbecue (North Carolina barbecue, i.e. smoked pork shoulder--we are not exactly equipped for a whole-hog operation here, with our little Weber!) and we'll have friends over. No plans for Monday yet. Maybe hiking, if it's not too hot. It has been incredibly beautiful here for the last two weeks. I hate thinking how hot it's going to get, and soon...I just have to enjoy it now!

I leave you with TV notes: the House finale was awesome, and so sad; I was actually upset to see Amber die (who knew?). And the Ugly Betty finale: what happens?! Where does she end up going? I can't believe we have to wait until September...

Voila:



I am quite happy. It's a bit itchy, but I think that's from the frogging process; once I wash the little bits out of it I think I'll be fine.

I have been to four or five thrift shops, and I have yet to find an appropriate victim for a DIY trapeze dress. What I'm looking for is apparently called a "duster", which is what your grandma wears around the house. At least I know mine does, and I have half a mind to ask her to send me down some of her old ones, since it won't matter that she's crazy short. They do sell them at Kmart, but that would defeat the purpose. I'm trying to recycle... Though it may come to that. Mark is skeptical, but that is what he does best, after all...

So remember my pretty indigo cotton, that was going to be a Nereides? Well, I changed my mind.


Pardon the crappy photo...this is going to be another Drops cardigan, this time in crocheted squares. At my gauge it will take 34 squares, and I have three done. We're leaving for Denver tomorrow morning (for my infamous BIL's graduation), and this should be a good traveling project. I'm also bringing supplies for Twinkle Toes, since I can use my plastic size 5 dpns. Have I mentioned my intense loathing and distrust of the TSA? Better safe than sorry, I say... In other knitting news, I am nearly done with the first of Cathy's awesome socks, and have finished the body of my Valpuri. I'm still afraid of running out of yarn, so I'm eliminating the cables from the sleeves--which should also make it go faster.

In non-crafting news, our primary is today! And it's been a total zoo. Several Robo-calls a day. And I was half expecting Chelsea Clinton to come knocking on our door. If this is anything like what our friends in New Hampshire and Iowa have to deal with, you have my utmost sympathies... Mark and I voted early, so we've been so done with all this for over a week, which makes all the hoopla even more annoying. It will be done soon, I hope...

No singing news, I'm afraid, except that my audition in Asheville is in less than two weeks. I have a character aria prepared in case they want to hear it. I have a feeling they will.