Just kidding. Remember how I said I would have a contest? Not really happening. My original idea was this: in honor of my 420th post (hardeeharhar) I would write about the stupidest thing I did in college, and invite others to post about the dumb things they did in college. The best response would win some lovely yarn from my stash in order to make Bloody Stupid Johnson; if the winner could not or did not want to try the pattern, I would have happily knit it for them, since I've been wanting to make it anyway. (I've wanted to start the Discworld series, but my dumb library doesn't have the whole thing, or even the first book.) The problem with this theory? The yarn, though lovely and soft and British and the right weight, is not really appropriate for complicated cable work. It would've been a "stupid" color choice, actually. So I apologize. But I do owe you, Gentle Reader, at least one example of my own stupidity. (There are many--usually involving boys or beer--but I decided to spare you stories about Led Zeppelin tribute bands, wine coolers, and crushes on theater majors/Darth Vader impersonators.)

* In my first week of college, I became a vegetarian in an attempt to impress a person I had just met earlier that day. He was kind of my first love, and we did date for a while, but still. Things did not end well (he could be a jerk, and I was a little high-maintenance). My "vegetarianism"--which consisted of eating lots of Gardenburgers and curly fries--lasted longer than our relationship, and he has apparently dropped off the face of the earth. It's been twelve years since I've even heard from him, and he doesn't even show up on Google. He's off the grid, an odd thing these days...

Anyway, enough nostalgia. Look at these.


The Hourglass socks are awesome and fast. Pardon the awful photo. I really wanted to go outside, but it's been 100 degrees and humid here the past few days, and I just couldn't bear it... I've also been working a bit lot on my Estonian lace stole, and am almost finished with the first lace motif. I'm going to need more yarn sooner than I thought.

My orthopedist appointment went well. Unfortunately I have to travel twenty-five miles one-way for physical therapy, and I couldn't even get an appointment for two weeks. (This insurance is aggravating!) But I am feeling better in the short-term, and have high hopes for my recovery.

This weekend we're headed to DC for our fun weekend/Mark's audition. Wish him luck! And an early congrats to Cathy and Mr. L(overman!) on their house. I wish you all the best, and am jealous!

A confession: I think I want to see Mamma Mia. Someone slap me! Eh, I'll wait until I can get it on NetFlix...

ETA: This is my 420th post! Remember how I promised a contest? Well, you'll get one in my next post.

I keep running out of time to blog! (Actually doing work at work, for a change!) Before I forget: some pictures from last week's Durham Bulls Stich & Pitch...


It poured and poured before the game started, but then there was a rainbow. Despite my obsessive hat-wearing this year, look at all those freckles!


Isn't that cool? She modified the chart so it would felt round. If you're on Ravelry, the pattern is here. As I have mentioned here many times, I stink at intarsia, but felting does erase many sins...

I finally pushed through and finished Sandra's Jaywalkers.

I made the smallest size, since she's petite and has narrow feet. I didn't realize how inelastic the pattern would be--I can barely get them on! You can see how the pattern is getting warped. Anyway, I do hope she likes them. She wears a lot of warm colors and green, so I think these will work (they're very brown and green and yellow in real life--not nearly so pink as they look in the photo). And since I can't seem to go cold turkey on socks, I'm making the Hourglass Eyelet socks from MagKnits for myself, out of the lilac Araucania sock yarn I bought at The Point in Greenwich Village last year. They are really flying. (Here's a link to someone else's photo.) Also, I seem to have developed a serious thing for lace knitting. Practically as soon as I finished the Swallowtail I needed to cast on for something else. Something rectangular. I love all the triangular shawl patterns out there, but I just don't wear that style--I need stoles, I guess. So I clicked around on Ravelry, and found the most lovely pattern. Here's what I have so far:


I'm using the alpaca-silk blend Mark bought me for Christmas. I will need to pick up another skein, but it'll take me a while to get that far.

In other craft news, I worked my tail off on the FrouFrou--and it sucked. The pattern is just very badly written. Basically it wouldn't fit me unless I were six feet tall and had no hips. (Neither of which describes me at all.) I was so disgusted, I don't even have the heart to frog it yet. The yarn will definitely be a cardigan--I have a few things in mind, but probably won't get to it for a little while. And speaking of failure, I'm going to frog my black Drops cardigan, too. I'll save the sleeves and basically make a new body, in one piece and according to my measurements. It fits well from the bust up, so I can at least use that part of the pattern--but I'll throw out the rest. It will be fitted. If it kills me. But again, it will take some fortitude to rip out a MONTH of work (and boring work at that--a humongous sea of black stockinette). It will be a good project come September.

Can you believe it's the middle of July already? I feel like I've been frittering my time away. I haven't, of course, but I've been in a real trial-and-error stage with repertoire, which isn't exactly wasting time but has that effect. I'm planning to record within the next month--with a new, lovely but hard French aria thrown in the mix--and I may be coaching Santuzza with the AD-to-remain-nameless in August as well. Plus I'm supposed to be learning Mercedes, but switching parts in the female lines in ensembles is so common in Carmen, and I haven't gotten full confirmation of what part I'm supposed to sing at a given time. So that's sort of on hold for now. (I guess it leaves me more time for the hard French aria.)

Update on my back: I have an appointment with an orthopedist on Friday, which will hopefully lead to a referral for physical therapy. I've been feeling better the last few days, but I still have some shooting down my right arm. Yuck.

Oh, and in super-exciting news, Mark is auditioning for Jeopardy! in less than two weeks. Being in DC on a Monday afternoon is not exactly convenient, but we're going to make a weekend out of it (IKEA! W00t!). I will try not to be jealous if he gets on the show and wins lots of money. Hell, my second-place prize was the down payment on our car, which he drives 80% of the time--so if he wins fifty grand I should get a car for myself. Only fair, right? 8)

A meme... (from Amanda, like, a week ago!)
Rules--
1.You must answer the questions using only one word.
2. Tag four others. (Eh, I don't like to tag people...but leave a comment if you're going to play.)

1. Where is your cell phone? Charging.
2. Your significant other? Working.
3. Your hair? Up.
4. Your mother? Nuts.
5. Your father? Funny.
6. Your favorite thing? Earth.
7. Your dream last night? England.
8. Your favorite drink? Wine.
9. Your dream/goal? Enlightenment.
10. The room you’re in? Cluttered.
11. Your hobby? Knitting.
12. Your fear? Pain.
13. Where do you want to be in 6 years? Onstage.
14. What you’re not? Mommy.
15. Muffins? Perhaps.
16. One of your wish list items? Prius.
17. Where you grew up? Middletown.
18. The last thing you did? Drink.
19. What are you wearing? Teal.
20. Favorite gadget? Turntable.
21. Your pets? None.
22. Your computer? Aging.
23. Your mood? Motivated.
24. Missing someone? Always.
25. Your car? Dirty!
26. Something you’re not wearing? Contacts.
27. Favorite store? Tar-zhay
28. Like someone? Yep.
29. Your favorite color? Green.
30. When is the last time you laughed? Colbert.
31. Last time you cried? Dunno.

I'm finally putting this pattern online! Enjoy.

Kawaii – a steering wheel cozy



1. Do your hands burn on the steering wheel in the summer?
2. Do they freeze on the steering wheel in the winter?
3. Do you want other knitters to recognize you in traffic jams?
4. Do you have a yen for the slightly ridiculous?
5. Do you like pink Japanese kittens?
6. Do you have an extra ball of fur novelty yarn?

If you answered YES to any of these questions, Kawaii is for you. I answered all six questions positively, so I decided to design Kawaii. You may use it however you like, as long as you give me credit. Not that I’m all that awesome, but you know what I mean.

Skill level
Easy. Pattern is knitted in the round, but even that is negotiable.

Size
48” steering wheel circumference, as modeled by ‘Rolla, my 1994 Toyota Corolla. Can be modified for larger or smaller steering wheels—just add or subtract a few stitches!

Materials
Lion Brand Fun Fur Prints in Confetti, less than one (57-yard) ball
Caron Simply Soft in Soft Pink, less than an ounce (under 60 yards)
(You may substitute any similar eyelash fur yarn, with any smooth worsted weight yarn. This would look really cool with red eyelash and black worsted, I think.)

US 10½ (6.5 mm) 29” circular needle (or straights, if you want to knit flat)
Yarn needle
Optional: puff paint, hot glue gun or non-slip drawer liner

Gauge
About 5 sts/12 rows = 4” in stockinette, tightly stretched lengthwise

Instructions
Holding both yarns together, CO 62 stitches using an elastic cast-on* and join in the round.** Work 12 rounds in stockinette (K every row) and BO very loosely. Weave in ends.

At this point, if you wish, run beads of puff paint or hot glue on the knit side, to prevent slipping. Because the cover will be tightly stretched on your steering wheel, use it sparingly to prevent stretching out the paint/glue. Alternately, you may cut out a thin length of non-slip drawer liner to fit between your wheel and the cover. The cover will be secured to the wheel in the next step, so these measures are simply optional insurance.

Turn the cover inside-out, so the purl side faces out. Place the cover on your steering wheel—again, it will be very tight (much safer than too loose!). Using about two yards of leftover Simply Soft, sew the sides of the cover together through the edge rows, starting at the bottom of the wheel. To keep the seam aesthetically pleasing, run the yarn through the top edge just before one of the spokes on the wheel, then through the bottom edge below the center of the spoke. After sewing all around the wheel, tie the loose ends of the Simply Soft securely in a bow. Start the car and enjoy your newly tricked-out steering wheel!

Modifications for knitting flat
CO 64 stitches using an elastic cast-on*, leaving a 12” tail. Work in stockinette (K one row, P one row) for 12 rounds and BO very loosely. Break yarn. Using the 12” tail of the Simply Soft only, sew the long ends (sides) together using mattress stitch, then weave in ends. The mattress-stitch seam should be placed at the bottom of your steering wheel, where your bow will appear.


*Longtail works well, but feel free to experiment.
**Make sure not to twist the cast-on row. I know every pattern says this.

Once again, we have dodged a bullet with my car. My parents drove up on Sunday, and my father put in a rebuilt distributor (and associated items) for just over $300. It was pretty scary for a while there, though. We definitely need to replace the car this year, for something I know I can rely on. I spend way too much time on the highway to take any chances.

Now back to your regularly scheduled craziness. Did you know Hypercolor is back in style? Uggghhh... The Nineties nostalgia is weird. The other day I watched a little bit of VH1's "Top 100 Greatest Songs of the Nineties", or whatever (MSCL reference!!), and it was an odd experience. Lisa Loeb wearing a short velvet dress with opaque tights. Whoa. I wanted that look. (Mark still has a crush on Lisa Loeb, which is understandable because she's totally cute.)

I'm playing with the blog formatting a bit--you may have to bear with some wacky colors until I figure out what works. I know all the cool kids are using Wordpress these days, but I have been here for almost seven years, you know...

My current knitting and crocheting projects are pretty boring right now. I'm making some Sidewinders for my friend Sandra (TV knitting if I ever saw it), and the pink FrouFrou is HUGE and slow. It's crocheted all in one piece, and I am now officially done with the sleeves, back and collar. I've started the first front, which involves continuous decreasing so it should go more quickly. I just hope I like this thing, because it is BIG.

I have been trying on Wagner arias like tops at Target these days. I think I'm finally going to stick with the sustained one from Tristan und Isolde, but I really feel like Goldilocks here--two arias I've tried are a bit too low (in that I can sing them, but they don't sound right), one is too high for the moment. The "just right" aria is the one I'm already singing (from Die Walkuere), and I just wish one of the others was more similar because the tessitura is perfect. And it's all academic anyway, since the only Wagner roles I could even perform in the next five years are the little supporting parts--Valkyries and Norns, basically. Le sigh...